Sword
by mchmstr39
Summary: A member of Project TEMPEST, Luke Wards has spent years training to fight the enemies of the UNSC. But after his involvement in The Great War, Luke begins to question his motives as he fights again in the Separatist Uprising following the Human victory.
1. Clubbed to Death

Prologue

"Clubbed to Death"

The audio and visual assault on the man sitting at the bar in the club was almost worse than any of the battles he had been in during the Human-Covenant War. Pounding drum-and-bass music was matched with a perfectly choreographed light show that was enhanced by holographic projectors attached to the pillars and walls around the dance floor. Nothing more than a two story club, the bottom floor had a large dance floor in the center that was illuminated in a ghostly blue color from within while a series of small and medium sized booths ringed the outside of the dance floor behind the pillars supporting the upper floor. The top floor was another dance area but it was mainly for mingling and talking, where people went when they needed a break or were trolling for a one night stand. Having popped a single pill earlier in the night, the man was free to drink as much alcohol as he wished without worrying about it being absorbed into his bloodstream. But he wasn't there for a good time. Adjusting the almost invisible glasses that sat high on his nose, the image of his target floated in the air. A beautiful blonde woman, the picture was from the UNSC's citizen databank which was notorious for making people look their worst, obviously saying something about her looks. Snapping back to focus, he turned away from the bar and looked out over the dance floor. Resisting the urge to adjust his almost uncomfortably tight black pants and shirt that would instantly draw attention to him from the fashion crazy crowd, he relented to just shifting his torso back and forth in a vain attempt to make his rather large frame sit slightly better in his outfit. Scanning ever so slowly, he kept his eyes peeled for the women's distinctive blonde hair and drop-dead gorgeous looks but he was in one of the most exclusive clubs in the new cultural center that was Seattle and it would be rare for someone who wasn't good looking to make their way in.

"_Overwatch to_ _Sword, reconfirming the target entered the club and all exists have been sealed_." The voice cut through the music thanks to the miniscule receiver in his ear. Without any way to talk back he could only listen and hope that the spotters could judge his intentions. Unintentionally tilting his head as he listened to the voice speak to him, his eye caught something familiar and he looked over to see the woman ordering a drink with her friends surrounding her. Picking up his drink, he pulled out his ID and swiped it over a pulsing blue circle on the countertop. Making his way towards the small group, he let his eyes wander across her body which was absolutely perfect, accentuated by a tight black dress that was tasteful but sexy.

"Can I buy you a drink?" he asked, leaning in directly towards her while he gave a small but warm smile that was returned by a flirtatious flick of her hair. Assassinating someone in this matter was always difficult and the man had to keep his wits about him to avoid falling for the target.

"I'm sorry, I already ordered, but if you want you can stay here." Gently nudging next to her, her friends seemed to get the hint that she was on her own for a while and they stalked away to find their own men, drinks in hand.

"Hope I didn't split you guys up," he said, trying to sound apologetic but in a way that showed he had no intentions of leaving.

"Don't worry about, we never stay as a group for long," she said with a laugh, reaching out to grab his right forearm before letting her fingers slide away slowly, her nails softly pressing against his skin. Their eyes locked for a few seconds and a sly smile crept across her face. "You want to dance? I had a long day and I need to have a little fun."

"Yeah, sure," he replied quickly as she took his hand and led him out to the dance floor as a new song began to play. Staying on the outside of mass of people near the center, but not floating on the edges, they pulled each other tight and began to dance quickly. It didn't take long for her to start letting her hands wander as she explored his back and neck before brushing her soft pink lips against his face. Drawing the line at kissing her, he let their cheeks brush up against each other as the music continued to dance with each other. This continued for a few more songs before she whispered into his ear during a lull in the music.

"Want to get out of here?" her voice was low as her breath tickled his ear and he felt like his body would turn to pudding. Recomposing himself, he slipped his hand down to just below her waist and pulled her tight as they made their way out of the dance floor. "Before we leave I should tell one of my girlfriends," she said suddenly, pulling away. He was about to protest for the sake of the ONI officers but he quickly agreed with her for fear of spooking the woman. It took a few minutes for her to spot on of her group and during this time he made sure to grab his jacket which had his weapon stowed away in a special pocket. An urge came over him to bring up the full file on the woman to know what it was that she was being killed for, something he never did. If ONI or the UNSC wanted someone dead, how was it his place to question why? Digging his fingernails deep into his palms, he opened up the file and quickly scanned it over. The woman, Nicole Yates, was an official within the Office of Immigration and Customs and was working for at least two off-world drug and weapons cartels that were open rebels of the UNSC, having retaken a handful of planets after The War had ended. Cursing himself, he closed the file and slipped his glasses off. Turning back towards the club from the entrance, he saw Nicole walking towards him, her hips swaying back and forth rhythmically. Smiling as he took her waist in his hand he led them outside and out towards the waterfront. The area they were in was busy as people walked up and down the streets from restaurants to clubs to bars and any other social establishment. Heading south towards the more industrial area of the waterfront, the crowds of people grew thinner and thinner.

"I parked down here to avoid the mess back there," he said, trying to avoid scaring her off by the stark difference in atmosphere from the lively hotspot. Spotting a small pier up ahead, he checked his watch and stopped when they reached it. "Hey, I need to make a phone call real quick." She nodded in understanding and he turned away as she took a few steps out onto the concrete dock. On either side of them were old boathouses that seemed to have been abandoned, no light coming from either one of the wooden structures. A soft glow shimmered off of the water as the enormous amount of light from the downtown area gave the entire area an ethereal purple glow. Sliding the pistol out of the jacket, he quickly spun around and spread his feet apart and steadied his aim. But before he could take the shots, she turned back around, obviously sensing something was wrong. Instantly recognizing the jet black M6C sidearm with the attached silencer she stopped dead in her tracks.

"Wha-what is this? If you want sex… I didn't have a problem earlier with going home with you." Silent, he slid the iron sights over her chest and tightened his grip, but something preventing him from pulling the trigger.

"You're a traitor to the UNSC and ONI wants you dead." His knuckles were beginning to turn white as he struggled to maintain composure and complete his mission.

"This is about the smuggling isn't it? Are you so willing to kill me just because you're ordered to? You're nothing but a weapon, a blunt instrument that some brass in Australia order around whenever someone gets on their bad side. I'd hope you're completely positive about what it is that you want to do."

**A/N (3/31/09): Thanks for reading the first chapter! I really enjoy hearing comments from my readers so feel free to stop by and just post your thoughts on anything you read. I hope you enjoy the rest of the story.**


	2. Retrieving the Target

Part One: Training

"Retrieving the Target"

The room was relatively dark, a blue glow hovering over everything as the myriad of monitors sat idle. A handful of men and women sat at an oversized table that had far too many seats for the number of people attending. All of them wore Navy uniforms and everyone there had at least one star on their shoulder boards but that didn't mean much in the room. High ranking officials within ONI's Navy Special Warfare Group, they had come together to give the final go ahead on whether or not to approve Project TEMPEST.

"Breaking them will be harder than with the Spartans. They were all captured when they were small children; probably barely remember their childhood before that. But these kids will be in their mid-teens at best and I'm sure all of us know how problematic that age group can be." The man who spoke sat at the front of the table was leaning back in his chair at an angle, obscured by the lack of lighting in the room.

"And there's no way we can get them at a younger age?" a woman asked from somewhere else in the room.

"Not at the moment. The changes to the brain seem to be triggered during puberty. Theoretically the females could be found sooner but the age gap might cause problems with team cohesion and the mental conditioning. Once they're in our custody, though, we might be able to get a better look at their DNA and see what it is that's triggering these changes, but until then this is the best that we can do," another woman responded, her voice sounding younger than the others.

"Well…if this is the best we can do, better deploy the retrieval teams."

* * *

"So…on January 20th, 2544…Luke Wards finally gets to brag to his friends about having sex with Sarah Lions?" The lights in the bedroom were low and some music played softly as Luke Wards laid on his back. The small girl, Sarah, was straddling him with her face close to his while her brown hair drooped over which created a sort of curtain around them.

"Oh no…they won't know about this," he whispered back to her before giving her a kiss softly. Sliding his arms up and down her back, he stopped at the small of her back and fiddled with the band of her underwear but didn't do much else. She smiled a little bit and went in for another kiss which he returned. Luke's heart was racing because it was his first time and to add to the pressure even more was the fact that she was a grade above him and a long time friend. Luckily she had read him like a book and wasn't expecting much but he was still having a hard time letting himself relax and just enjoy it. Reaching behind her, he undid the clasps on her bra as she wiggled the pink garment off and tossed it to the side. Still wearing his jeans, she unbuttoned them before rolling to the side so that he could yank them off. Getting back onto him, they continued to kiss, each one waiting for the other to make the first move.

* * *

Hiding in the darkness outside, four ODST infiltrators waited silently. The house that Luke lived in was relatively large and was build on the outskirts of a suburban sprawl that had halted once the war with the Covenant began to heat up and the Humans began to shift their resources to war effort. Aracito, an agricultural planet with a few large population centers, was nestled deep within the Inner Colonies and despite the steady losses they were incurring the planet was considered too crucial to the food supplies to be heavily drafted and had instead received a rather sizeable fleet for protection.

Travelling fast, they had abandoned their armored chest and leg pieces and instead wore light web gear that was filled with non-lethal tools. Moving up to a door, they pulled the face masks completely over their heads and strapped on the combination night vision/thermal imaging goggles.

"Keep your wits about you. These kids can…I don't know…sense danger or something. Just know that if you blow it, you'll never hear the end of it." The squad leader pulled out his M7 caseless SMG and fitted the silencer to the end while the soldiers behind him, chuckling at the threat, pulled out their M6C magnums and fitted silencers as well. Leaning up against the door, illuminated in a green hue that also glowed from the thermal component, the squad leader plugged a fiber optic cable into the computer attached to his arm and tapped on the screen twice which was rewarded with the sound of lock opening. Pushing it open slowly, the four soldiers moved into the kitchen silently as their rubber boots muffled any noise. As they got their bearings they stopped suddenly when some muffled laughter made its way to them from the upper floor. Looking around, the squad leader located the stairs and motioned towards them and the other three nodded in acknowledgment. There were no lights on in the ground floor which made the soft light filtering down the stair well light up their night vision with ease. Taking a right from the kitchen, they took a few steps up the stairs until it came to a corner which was even brighter. The squad leader stopped at the corner and poked his head around and looked up the final flight of stairs which led to a hallway. He slowly took a few steps up the stairs but heard a voice and stopped.

"Hang on, I need to go into the bathroom real quick." They didn't have any information as to what the target's voice sounded like, but the knowledge of him being a male and the feminine laughter from earlier seemed to suggest that that was their target but the presence of someone else threw a wrench into their plans. Quickly peeking over the stairs as he heard a bed squeak and shift, he spotted a toilet in the mirror in the doorway directly to their right and he silently slid back around the corner and waited as her heard someone walked across the soft carpet and then onto the tiled floor. Moving back up to the stairs again, he knew that he would have to grab him before the boy went back into his bedroom. Motioning for his squad to follow them, he spotted the boy standing nude in the bathroom in front of the mirror that was to the left of the door frame. Careful to stay out of view of the mirror, he stayed up against the wall as he moved up past the door and onto the other side of it. Directing the squad to stay on the stairs up against the same wall, they waited as he did whatever it was that he was doing.

"Hurry up! I can't wait much longer!" the girl's voice called out from the room. Averting his eyes from the enhanced light, the squad leader stayed silent as the adrenaline began to course through his veins. Inside the bathroom, the boy was whispering to himself as he stepped away from the sink and started to make his way out. Preparing himself, the ODST tensed up his muscles and was about to lunge out with his muscular arms while one of the other soldiers waited with a drug filled needle but he was shocked when the boy slammed into him and threw him to the ground.

"Sarah! Get out of here!" Recovering from the shock in a split second, he rolled onto his stomach and grabbed Luke around the ankles and pulled him to the ground. Struggling, he crawled in front of the door as the squad leader got on top of him and forced his head to the ground while the other ODST came up and stabbed a needle into his rear. In the room, the girl was standing nude, stunned at the sight of the four soldiers moving about. Snapping out of the shock, she let out a blood curdling scream as one of the soldiers came in and tackled her, clamping her mouth shut with his hand.

"Sir! What are we going to do with her?" the soldier asked as she thrashed underneath him. Finally rolling her over, he put one knee on her rear while the other pinned her upper back down and the fourth squad member came over and quickly zip tied her feet together and pinned down her arms.

"Command, this is Lieutenant June, we have the target but there is a witness. I repeat, there is a witness." A few seconds passed as he waited, Luke still struggling beneath him. "Roger that. Nguyen, go get the clone. Put her on the bed and make it look like a robbery gone wrong." Looking down, Ward's eyes flashed open and he tried to call out but his mouth was held shut which resulted in just a loud grunt. A few seconds later, the drugs kicked in and he stopped resisting while the squad set about their assigned tasks. Sarah was lifted up and onto the bed, still trying to escape but restrained by the zip ties. Grabbing Luke by the arms, he dragged him into the room as he pulled out a head wrap that he pulled over his head and kept it loose around his neck. "We're going to need to get some clothes on him. Nothing fancy, just some boxers and a shirt." One of the other soldiers acknowledged this and pulled open a drawer and tossed some boxer briefs at Luke before grabbing a white under shirt, then quickly pulling them over his body while leaving the zip ties on. Coming up the stairs, Nguyen was leading a flash clone up the stairs and into the bedroom. The other two soldiers began to ransack the room and moved into other ones as they put the clone onto the bed. Identical to Luke in every way, it had yet to be imprinted with memories or knowledge since it would only be used to stage the scene and would be a waste of money. Tying it up as well, they pushed the clone and Sarah together who was shaking with fear. Muffling both of their mouths with a sock, tape was wrapped around their mouths to make it look like a petty criminal and not a crack team of UNSC operatives. June and Nguyen pulled out their pistols and took aim while Sarah thrashed about frantically, the clone blissfully unaware of what was about to happen. Taking a few shots, she stopped moving as the silenced rounds tore through her and into the bed. Blood trickled out of the wounds and soaked into the sheets as she went limp.

"Command is waiting outside with the vehicle. They were nice enough to bring the clone to me," Nguyen said as he holstered his weapon.

"That's good, I'll carry him out there. Toss a few things around and then unlock all of the doors and leave the kitchen one open," June replied.

"Yes sir." Bending over, the Lieutenant tossed Luke over his shoulders and slowly moved down the stairs and into the kitchen. Parked up on the grass out of direct sight from the road was a black van waiting for the ODSTs. As he approached the side of it, the door opened up to reveal the inside lined with monitors and weapons, two ONI officers waiting inside. Dumping him onto the rubber floor, the officer who was waiting in the back quickly came up to Luke and began to examine him. Two of the ODSTs quickly made their way out of the house with a backpack full of stuff.

"What the fuck is all that?" June asked angrily.

"How do you have a robbery without getting stuff stolen," one of two answered, proud of himself. June didn't like it but they had a point. Tugging them in, he waited for Nguyen who was bringing up the rear and hopping into the van before June got in himself.

* * *

Luke tried to open his eyes but his eyelids were heavy and he couldn't seem to manage the strength to do it. Stretching his arms out the bedding felt different but without being able to see it he wasn't sure if he was imagining it.

"Hey…Luke…wake up." The voice was familiar but his brain seemed to be running at half-power and he couldn't put a face or name to the voice. Grunting as he pushed himself up a little, he was finally able to open his eyes but they were so blurry he was unable to make many details out. Rolling over onto his back, the voice spoke to him again. "Luke…I can't wait much longer." Sitting on the edge of the bed, he was able to make out a female facing away from him without any clothes on, her brown hair falling down on her back.

"Sarah…is that you?"

"Hey, it's about time you woke up. I was getting lonely waiting for you." Leaning up on his elbows, he saw that he was completely nude but didn't feel the need to cover himself up. As he began to wake up, his senses seemed to get sharper and sharper and he started to notice irregularities. The air in the room was unusually cold for his house and it tasted too clean, devoid of the smell of the fields and crops near his neighborhood. His bed was also different, the plain white comforter and sheets not something that he had.

"What are you doing here?"

"You invited me over after school so we could have a little…fun. Don't you remember?" Luke tried to think back to earlier in the day but his mind seemed to refuse to back beyond just the past few minutes.

"Oh…yeah," he said, lying. "What did you have in mind?" Sarah turned around with a smile on her face and walked around the bed towards him leaned over to give him a kiss before disappearing. All around him, his bedroom began to melt away, revealing bright white walls that seemed to glow from the inside. Stunned at what was happening he couldn't move as his jaw fell limp. He sensed something was happening but before he could react, a wave of water came across his face as masked men threw bucket after bucket of water on his face before he was grabbed by the arms and thrown to the floor.

"What is your name!?" someone screamed in his ear.

"I'm…I'm Luke Wards," he replied frantically, the water pulling his brown hair over his face as drops of water clogged his nose. More and more people moved around him, one of them kicking the bed out of the way forcefully. Suddenly a shooting pain cut through his chest as someone punched him hard.

"No! Your name is Sword!"

"What?!" Unable to think, he looked around the room before it all went black. Feeling a tightening around his neck, he began to panic as the voice screamed in his ear again.

"What is your name!?"

"Luke!" Another stab of pain, this time in his back.

"Alright, move him," the voice said and he was instantly yanked up onto his shins and pulled across the slick floor. He was pulled for what seemed like forever before he was thrown into what Luke assumed was a chair. His arms were pulled back and tied to the legs of the chair. Someone's foot impacted on his chest and he fell over onto the floor and felt someone hold his mouth shut. Water suddenly began to splash over his head and he began to panic as his nose was covered in a stream of water and every time he managed to open his mouth it was filled with water. Kicking his legs back and forth, the stream of water stopped just as he was about to pass out. Getting a few deep breaths in case they started again, he felt the arms let go of him and footsteps echo about the room before a door slammed shut.

* * *

Lieutenant June stood inside of a brightly lit room, surrounded by a bank of monitors that flipped between cameras in different rooms. The images that he saw on them were all the same though. Tied to chairs were thirty kids, all of whom had begun the first phase of their training which was erasing their identity. By inflicting both mental and physical pain in the form of strikes or waterboarding, they were planting the first seeds of reeducation by forcing them to become the soldier they wanted them to be. Dressed in his gray, black, and white urban BDUs, June stood at attention as he watched the screens while waiting for his superior to arrive.

"Sorry I'm late, fill me in." Captain Ambresio was in his late forties and was in his gray uniform that matched his salt and pepper hair.

"Yes sir. All of the targets were successfully retrieved with relatively little incident. None of them sustained anything beyond bruises during the capture although we had a few complications with number fourteen, Sword."

"Is that how you got the shiner?" Ambresio asked with a chuckle.

"Affirmative, sir," he replied back, not afraid to laugh a little at himself. "He seemed to know I was there and tried to alert a girl that he was with. Per protocol we brought in the flash clone and executed them both."

"Shame. We warned you beforehand that they can sense your presence even now." June looked down a little at the frank comment. The bruise on his right cheek stood out against his relatively fair skin but it was just another badge of honor for the seasoned veteran who still kept his brown hair buzzed almost to the point of baldness, a style he had picked up from boot camp. "Where are we at now?"

"Right on schedule, sir. We've all given them their new names and all of them were punished for hanging onto their old names. Right now we're going to be letting them sit in the holding rooms for about twelve hours before we go back in to go for a marathon conditioning session."

"Just remember, we need these kids to be stable by the end of this. Warrior monks. If they've completely lost their minds, they're useless to us."

"Yes sir, will do."


	3. Team Hurricane

"Team Hurricane"

Luke couldn't stop the shivering as he lay naked on the concrete floor that was still covered in water. The entire time his mind tried to piece together what was going on but nothing seemed to make sense, in fact it seemed to get only more convoluted the more he focused on it. _Why did they come into his house and kidnap him? Where was he? Why were they calling him "Sword"? _With no food and no sleep, he was already beginning to feel his body slowing down as his stomach rumbled painfully, almost as if it was rolling over inside of him. Afraid to call out, he tried to make himself more comfortable but being tied to the chair made it almost impossible as his joints had given up long ago in their protest of the positioning. Just as he was about to move he stopped, he felt someone coming and remained motionless as the door slammed open.

"Good evening, Sword." The voice seemed arrogant and mocking and Luke was already tensing up for what he assumed was coming. Arms grabbed him and thrusted his body into the air as they righted the chair. During this short bit of silence he tried to piece together what time it was. He had remembered that they captured him at night but the drugs had kept him asleep until he was in the holographic room where they made him confront Sarah's ghost and so he had no idea how much time had elapsed. And add on to that however long he'd been stuck in the room and he had no way of getting his bearings which seemed to be their intentions.

"Why am I here? What did I do?" he suddenly blurted out without even thinking. A sharp pain shot across his shoulders as someone smacked him for speaking. Clenching his teeth to fight the pain and any other urges to speak, he waited for someone to speak.

"So why _are _you here?" the same voice said again, that mocking tone from earlier coming through again. In a single swift motion the hood was ripped off of his head and he immediately had to close his eyes from the brightness of the room. Forcing his eyelids to just open ever so slightly, he could see two sources of blinding white light shining at him and he controlled the urge to shut his eyes again. His captors seemed to have no problem waiting for him and so after a minute had passed of struggling to get control of himself he was finally able to get a good look at his surroundings. He had been tossed into a rather small concrete room, all of the surfaces covered in gray and green colored grime with large water stains on the floor and on splotches on the wall. Two soldiers stood behind him but every time he tried to turn around to get a solid look at them they pushed his head forward towards the two lights. Still nude, his body was already beginning to bruise and dried blood was caked on him from some small cuts he had received. The man in front of him was in an urban camo uniform and was standing with his arms folded across his chest, his head completely bald. Luke's eyes centered on a red patch on the soldier's right shoulder, a skull centered in it that was wreathed in flames as it smiled angrily. Just below that was the acronym "O.D.S.T."

"You're UNSC?" Luke asked, expecting to be hit as he grimaced unconsciously.

"_We're_ UNSC, actually," he responded quickly. Luke's eyes narrowed in misunderstanding and he stared at the man. "You're in the Corps. now buddy. We're all in the same boat." He wasn't sure what it was the man was telling him and he let his jaw go slack as. "I don't want to take anyone's thunder for later but let's just say you're very special and very important to the UNSC, but my job is to make you the best damn soldier I can and your training started when we woke you up and it won't stop until you either do well enough or you're dead." He turned to his side and tossed a pair of black pants and a gray t-shirt at Luke as well as a pair of plain white underpants. "Better know that I'm not joking about you dying. Untie him," he said to the soldiers behind him. "Get dressed and then stand up, it's time to assign you to your squads." Feeling the bands loosen around his wrists and ankles, he tentatively stood up and pulled the clothes on, noticing that both the pants and shirt had the word "Sword" printed in opposite colored lettering.

"Why do you keep calling me 'Sword'?" he asked.

"It's your name now and you'd better learn to accept that." Fully dressed, he was given a pair of socks and some comfortable running shoes which he put on, thankful to not have to be barefoot on the concrete anymore. The ODST opened up the door and motioned for him to follow behind which he did, using this time to stretch out his aching knees. The hallway he was in was similar to the room that he'd been kept in with weak lamps protruding from the ceiling at regular intervals which illuminated the hallway in a sickly yellow light. There were numerous doors just like the one that he had walked through and Luke could only assume that they were all the same dungeons that he had been kept in. Finally arriving at a staircase, they ascended it and came to a large metal door with a small keypad next it. The ODST tapped in a long series of numbers before dull thumps echoed through the small area and the door swung open slowly. The scenery around him was unlike anything he'd ever seen. Towering snow capped mountains flanked them on all sides with an unending forest full of dark green evergreen trees swaying gently in the light breeze. A soft golden light was filtering across the mountain tops as the star was seemingly giving it's last hours of light before it relented to darkness. The entrance to the underground complex was a nondescript concrete bunker that was protruding out of the ground and covered in low brush and weeds, leading to a dirt clearing that was obviously man made. A large group of people had been assembled around the clearing and a quick glance revealed that a large portion of them were dressed in the same outfit as Luke was. He quickly did a head count and came up with thirty-one people, thirty-two including himself. The other people, all of whom appeared to be about his age, appeared to be arranged into groups of four in a sort of half moon that was facing one of the mountain ranges, a squad of Marines pacing back and forth in front of a chain link fence. The ODST who had taken him front his room pushed him towards three others who were standing with confused looks on his face. They looked at him when he stepped next to them and the four teens looked at each other silently. The two boys were about Luke's size which was a feat as he was one of the biggest kids in his school, both of them had short blonde hair and looked relatively fit if not unspectacular with the one on the left looking a little leaner and angular in his features while the other was a little softer and bulkier. In between the two of them was a very pretty brunette who had cool blue eyes and an expressionless face, standing a little shorter than the three males in the group.

"What are we doing here?" Luke whispered to them as he scanned back and forth, making eye contact with each of them at a time. The one on the right just shook his head slightly and contorted his face in a way that said he knew as much as Luke. Off in the distance he thought he heard an engine revving and looked to his left as most of the others did the same. The thick foliage surrounding the small clearing obscured his view and he was unable to see what was causing the sound but it sounded like there were a few vehicles making their way towards their position. Finally catching a glimpse through the thick tree trunks that made up the forest they were in, he could see an olive green military vehicle pass through while a few more followed behind it. A few seconds later the vehicles pulled up in front of the gate and soldiers began to pile out. Of the four vehicles, two of them were transport vehicles while the other two only had two seats and a large machine gun fitted to the back. Luke recognized them from the videos of the war as the M12 LRV "Warthog" and the M831 transport variant. Stepping out of the third vehicle and flanked by armed ODSTs who seemed to ignore the Marines as they walked into the clearing was Captain Ambresio. Stopping just at the edge of the dirt clearing, he cleared his throat and began to speak.

"My name is Captain Ambresio!" he yelled out, his voice booming. "All of you have been handpicked to serve the United Nations Space Command in defending Humanity. Your training has already begun and this is the next step in that program. All of you have been put into groups of four and you will stay in those groups until you have completed training so I suggest you get to know your squad mates very well. In twelve hours, you will have to be at a rally point in this valley. At that point are a collection of flags that you must capture and present to me at the nearby camp in order to gain entrance. If you fail to capture the flag or present it to me within the time limit will not be given a bed or a hot meal the following night. A basic map will be given to you that has the locations of four pieces of equipment that are vital to your success." As he spoke, ODSTs made their way around the groups, handing them a single piece of paper that seemed to be a rough sketch of the valley with six points of interests listed on it. "Squads will be patrolling the valley and any groups that do not check in within thirteen hours will be punished accordingly. Lieutenant June will tell you when to begin," Ambresio said as he motioned to an armored soldier near him. Removing his helmet, June held it at his side as the Captain got into his Warthog and drove off. Wearing the full armor, June was an imposing figure as he examined the eight groups of kids who were staring at him silently.

"When I give the signal, you will have twelve hours to capture the flag and turn it in. If you're more than hour later than that time we will hunt you down and you will be in a world of pain." As he listened to the Lieutenant speak, he recognized the voice but couldn't think of where he'd heard it before. "Once you hear the gunshot the timer will begin." Putting his helmet on, June turned away from the kids and got back into the last M12 while all of the ODSTs, including those that had been there previously, piled into the transport variants. The girl in their group was holding the paper and turned back to face the other three.

"What's 'Team Hurricane' mean?" she asked, her voice calm and quiet but strong. She was referring to the name that was on the top of the paper in plain black print.

"I'm guessing that's what they're calling us," the skinnier boy said in a tone that seemed high for his size. Luke looked at his shirt and saw that "Dagger" had been stitched into it.

"Dagger, huh?" Luke said, jerking his head in the direction of the name.

"Yeah, his is 'Claymore' and hers is 'Katana'. Seeing as yours is 'Sword' I'm guessing there's a theme here."

"What's your real name?" Luke asked but their reactions instantly let him know he had done something wrong. Dagger clenched his teeth and parted his lips while pushing his hand down.

"If you want to get the shit beat out of you, keep talking like that." Glancing around, Luke could see the Marines watching them intently.

"Well, in that case, I'm Sword," he said, extending his hand to Dagger and Claymore first before finally coming to Katana. Taking her hand gently, he let a small smile creep across his face as she returned it. Realizing that he was hanging on too long, he pulled back his hand with a sheepish look on his face.

"Let's look at the map and figure out a plan of attack," Claymore said. They agreed and moved away from the other groups who were beginning to do the same. Putting it on the ground he could see that the valley was shaped like a banana and that they were near the very southern portion of it. Up at the north were two points near each other with the lower one having a small white flag inside of a black circle while the other one was what looked like a small house inside the same circle. The other four points were just generic dots without any kind of context to figure out which one they should go for. There seemed to be some small markings for geographic points of origin but they didn't hint at what they actually were and he went back t focusing on their plan of attack.

"Judging by the sun which has been going down since I've been out here, it's nearing night so we'll have to try and make as much progress as possible before we're out of light. Do we want to try and get any of these items or just try and get to the flag as soon as we can and get this thing over with?" Dagger had quickly taken control of the group and was pointing to the different points and dragging his finger back and forth between them. "Well, either way, we need to head north and get to the rally point. We can stay up the mountainside and try and get the two that are on the way before getting to the rally point and grabbing it."

"I don't think it'll be that simple. It won't take twelve hours to get up there and grab that flag and there's obviously a reason for why that equipment is waiting for us." Luke continued to examine the map when a single shot echoed through the forest.

* * *

Sitting in the passenger seat of the Warthog, June switched his BR55 over to single shot and fired off a round into the trees and clicked the safety back on. Squinting his eyes a little as he glanced back over the windshield in the direction of the setting sun, he brought up a map of the valley on his HUD and looked at the way points.

"Alright boys, you know what to do. Don't you dare let those kids grab a flag or you'll be stuck on PT duty for two weeks. Alpha, Bravo, and Charlie squads will be defending the flag while Echo and Foxtrot will be patrolling the no-man's land between the perks and the flag. If you encounter one of the teams you have the right to engage them and eliminate them. Just make sure you've all got dummy rounds on you and not live rounds," he said into the radio, laughing a little. On his map he designated the different locations and then closed it. June was originally supposed to head back to the base but a quick call to Ambresio earlier had given him clearance to participate in their first operation. It had been a while since he had been in combat with the Covenant and he wanted to see how special these kids really were.

A/N: I had originally planned on spacing the chapters out as I released them but I looked back over them and decided that I'll be putting out this part of the story quickly and then taking a short break before putting out the next chunk. I think it'll make it easier for everyone to enjoy the flow without having to wait a week for each new chapter.


	4. The Reward

"The Reward"

The last vestiges of sunlight were filtering through the dense evergreen forest, long golden rays illuminating a soft haze that was beginning to rise up from the ground. Walking in silence, Luke and the rest of Team Hurricane were following a small crystal clear stream and using the clear space along it's edges to make better time. The underbrush was thick but not encumbering which was comforting in case they needed to quickly take cover. Lingering in the back, he had been purposefully changing his speed, watching Katana do the same to stay near him but not speaking a word as she stayed a few steps away from him at all times. Dagger had taken point in their little group which Luke was happy to relinquish until time came for true leadership which he was confident he would be able to provide. Pulling out the map that they'd be given, folded up neatly in his pocket, Luke examined it for the millionth time in some sort of ritual he had began to follow as he attempted to glean any more information out of it since the last time he checked it. He once again focused on their target which happened to be just south of what appeared to be a small stone outcropping on hill. Without any sort of compass or landmarks to navigate them towards the items, they had no way of knowing where they were at and it was beginning to worry him as the light was failing. Up ahead of him the brush seemed to drop off slightly and the green pine leaves of the trees made up the horizon in front of them, indicating that they were about to head back downhill. A few minutes later and he was right as the stream picked up speed and meandered into a gully and went out of view. Stopping for a few seconds Katana came up next to him as he tried to get his bearings with his surroundings, looking over his shoulder as he glimpsed down at the map and then back at the forest.

"Hey…what are you doing? Why are you stopping?" Dagger said, realizing that he was on his own. Standing in between Dagger and Luke was Claymore, looking uncomfortable as he seemed to sense that something was brewing.

"I think we should stop and get our bearings. It looks like if we keep following the stream we'll head back into the valley which is going to waste time we don't have." Luke had already begun eyeing trees to climb but Dagger wasn't ready to give up that fast.

"No, come on, it's going to be dark soon and I don't want to be fumbling around in this forest."

"Then we _stop_, figure out which direction to go and then hurry up and get there." It wasn't hard for Luke to point out the pitfall in Dagger's argument and it showed as he stood there silent. Luke folded the map back up and walked around with his head straight up in the air as he tried to find a suitable tree. A few seconds later and he found one that seemed to be tall enough for him to look over the rest of the tree canopy. "Hey, Claymore, can you give me a leg up?" he asked as he stood next to a large tree trunk.

"Yeah sure," Claymore replied as he jogged over to Luke and clasped his hands together to for him to step on. "Once you're on, I'm going to lift you up and you stand on my shoulders."

"Sounds like a plan." In one swift motion, Luke stepped onto his hands and then onto his shoulders, quickly turning around and grabbing onto the lowest branch. Pulling himself up higher, he swung his legs over towards another branch which he wrapped his feet around so that he could his upper body up higher. Finally standing up, he began to shimmy back and forth as he slowly made his way up through the tree. Stepping across to a higher branch Luke grabbed onto two branches above him and pulled himself up just as a small gust of wind blew across the tree. Feeling the adrenaline blast into his veins as the tree swayed, he gripped the thinning trunk with his legs to brace himself until the swaying stopped. After a little more climbing, he breached the tree canopy and was able to see the valley virtually unobstructed. Before scanning the area, he made sure he was firmly planted on multiple branches so that he wasn't in danger of plunging all the way down to the ground below. The valley they were in was rather large and was, for the most part, covered in thick evergreen trees that were swaying gently in the breeze that was funneled down between the mountains. They were travelling rather close to what Luke assumed was the western side of the valley and just on the edge of where the trees thinned into the foothills which were covered in stones and tall grass. North of their location was a rather large field that was almost completely devoid of trees and underbrush, just rich green grass covering the sloping hill. Near the top of a small hill in the field, Luke spotted an odd stone formation. It took a few seconds before he recognized it as the landmark on the map. Shifting his gaze to the south a little bit, he saw a few small rock outcroppings poking through the ground which he assumed was the location of the prize. "Yes…" he whispered to himself while pumping his fist a little. Lingering for a few more seconds to make sure he had committed the layout to memory, he began to make his way back to the ground. After a few minutes of climbing and a few adrenaline laced slippages Luke was back on the ground.

"Did you see anything?" Claymore asked, standing up after sitting on rock near the base of a tree.

"Yeah, if we keep heading in this direction," he said, extending his arm away from the stream and out towards the clearing, "We'll hit a field that's got that rock structure on the map in it. Maybe an hour, hour and a half of walking?" Luke glanced over at Dagger not to rub it in but to judge his reaction and he was disheartened to see the teen looking disinterested almost to the point of giving Luke the impression that he didn't care about the team. "If we hurry we might get there with some light left." He saw Claymore nod and looked over at Katana who did the same. The other two began to walk, moving away from the stream and into the heavier brush and just as Luke was about to start walking he felt a gentle hand on his left bicep. Expecting to see Katana staring right at him, he turned to instead see her leaning in towards his arm.

"You cut yourself pretty badly," she said with the same quiet tone that wasn't overpowering but hinted at a strong spirit. Every time he heard her speak a calming sensation tingled his nerves and he wished that she'd never stop talking. Snapping out her spell, he looked down at the bottom of his forearm which was covered in a mix of blood and debris from the tree. It was hard to see how bad the actual wound was with all of the mess on his arm and she led him over to the stream to help him wash it out. Both of them cupped water in their hands and splashed it across his arm.

"You and Dagger seem to be butting heads."

"Yeah, I guess so. I just don't think he's cut out for leadership. If we kept following him we'd be going into the valley and away from our goal. I'm just worried that if we get on his case too much he'll just shut down and become dead weight."

"Yeah…" she replied, gently wiping away the blood that was still trickling from the rather small wound. "You seem to be accepting all of this pretty easily." Caught off guard by this statement, he looked at her with a quizzical look on his face. "Well, I mean, no one seems to be putting up a fight or anything. I'm sure if we wanted to we could escape over the mountains."

"I highly doubt that," Luke said, laughing a little. "No doubt they have this valley under massive surveillance and would know if we tried to escape." He stood up from the stream and wiped the last bits of water off of his arm. "If you think about it, though, this is something that I'd have to be doing anyways within a few months after I get drafted. All I know is that if my cousin's boot camp was anything to go off of we're doing something very special here. Just what's so special is the question." Both of them stood in silence thinking about what he'd said before Luke started walking in the direction he had identified earlier.

"What planet are you from?" Katana asked him, no longer interested in being stone silent.

"Aracito, you?"

"Mars," she replied quickly.

"One of the old worlds? Ever visited Earth?"

"Yeah, a few times but it's not like there's anything too interesting or important there. The brochures make it look a lot better," she finished, laughing a little at her own joke; Luke smiled but stayed silent. Staying separate from the other two, they continued their journey towards the stone circle to gather whatever it was that was waiting for them.

By the time they arrived at the edge of the field the night had almost completely taken over with the few clouds over their heads showing the last glimpses of light as their edges glowed a soft golden color. Off to the west, two bright white twin moons were beginning to rise up over the mountains which provided quite a bit of light for them to see. Luke had moved to the front of the group, with Katana following him a little further back, as they arrived at the edge of the forest. He stopped about twenty feet away from where the field began and scanned the area. The field sloped down all the way from the side of the mountain towards a small river near the center of the valley where some trees grew in between the two halves of the forest. Further out to his left, the field began to slope back upwards and became rockier and looked much more difficult to traverse than he had assumed when in the tree.

"Sword. Look down there, down the tree line some," Claymore said as he pointed down in the direction of the river. Unable to see what he saw, Luke moved closer to the edge of the plain so that he was almost completely out of the forest. Scanning in the ethereal blue and white light that the moons cast over the valley he was about to write off Claymore's thoughts until he saw something out of place. Glowing a bright white where four shapes emerging from the edge of the forest slowly, heading in the direction of the stone circle. They were a couple hundred yards away from them but the minute he spotted them he ducked down and motioned for the others to do the same.

"Those shirts are lighting them up from a mile away," Luke said, watching them amble further into the open seemingly as if on a stroll. Looking down around him he started to drag his hands through the ground, burshing aside the fallen pine needles. Underneath it was dark and moist soil that he dragged across the front of his shirt, muting the glowing effect of their shirts.

"Nice…" Claymore said, beginning to do the same.

"What are you planning to do after we cover ourselves up?" Dagger asked with a hint of sarcasm in his voice. "They're going to beat us to the supplies up there."

"Nope, they won't." Luke looked out over the field and then back towards the ground. "Make sure you get everyone's back. Who's the fastest runner here?" Looking at Dagger and Katana he waited for an answer.

"I was a sprinter for track and field," she said, looking over at Dagger to see what his offer would be. He didn't respond but rather shrugged his shoulders and shook his head.

"Okay…this is what we're going to do. Dagger, Claymore, and I will cut across the field and stall them. Katana, you're going to haul ass out towards those rocks and find what it is that we're looking for. Once you know what it is, either go and hide or help us out if you can." Everyone, including Dagger, nodded in agreement and continued dirtying their shirts up. Luke turned towards Katana and motioned for her to turn around so that he could cover her back up. Claymore and Dagger moved away from the two of them and did the same giving Luke a chance to talk to Katana in private. "You okay with this? If you're not we can figure out something different," he said, whispering into his ear. She turned her head just a little as he spoke so that she was exposing her right cheek to him while her eyes looking in the same direction although she couldn't see him.

"I'll be fine. I'm just more worried about you guys beating the crap out of each other and it getting nasty. Maybe you should find a few branches or something to threaten them with, that way I can get the goods and we can pull out without risking any injuries." Luke kept smearing dirt over her back as he contemplated what she was saying.

"That makes sense. Here, do me real quick," he replied, turning around as he scanned for some branches which were strewn about the forest floor. He couldn't help but feeling shivers rush up and down his spine as her nimble hands worked the dirt into his shirt, goose bumps popping up all over his skin. Spotting a few branches that would do, he walked over to them and handed them to Dagger and Claymore who seemed to catch on quickly. Their weapons weren't very threatening looking, the branches looking to be around two feet each and rather thin, but they at least had something that the other team didn't have. Repositioning at the edge of the forest, he was glad to see that their prey was moving rather slow and hadn't made much ground. Taking a few seconds to center himself, he gave Katana the signal to run which she did. Bursting out from the tree line, she was already in a perfect runner's form while plowing through the waist high grass in the field. Giving her a few seconds to get ahead of them before confronting the others, Luke motioned for his group to make their move. Standing up and running towards them he pumped his legs over the lumpy ground while keeping the stick at his right side. Stealing a glance to his left, Katana was already nearing the rocky area where the item was sitting. When he looked back in front of him it was easy to see that one of them had spotted her and were beginning to jog towards her. "Hey! Hey! I'm coming for you!" he started to call out before resorting to just yelling and screaming. The four kids looked stunned as they were suddenly confronted with the three boys running at them with sticks screaming at them and stopped moving. They began to tighten up and recede away as Luke stayed at the front of their inadvertent arrowhead formation, pumping his legs as hard as he could and feeling the lactic acid already building up in his muscles. He was tempted to steal a glance towards Katana but controlled himself in an effort to shield her in case someone decided to break off and hunt her down.

"What do you think you're doing?" one of them called out as they slowed down, nearing the four of them. Luke didn't answer until he got closer to them when he stopped about twenty-five feet away. His heart was pounding and his body was pumping more and more adrenaline into his body which was causing his body to shiver ever to slightly. Taking a few moments to catch his breath, he strode towards them confidently until the two groups were about fifteen feet away.

"Why don't you just turn around and keep heading towards the rally point?" he said, almost ordering them while he still continued to take short breaths.

"And just let you get whatever's hidden up there? No thanks," one of the two boys said, his skin appearing to be a very deep tan in the moonlight, his black hair cut short. There was a hint of an accent but Luke didn't recognize it and it seemed to come and go very quickly.

"We've already secured it and we're heading towards the rally point, you guys should do the same unless you want to be left out in the cold all night," he repeated, trying to avoid getting physical with them. The boy he was talking to shook his head defiantly, his face contorting in a way that seemed to suggest that what Luke had said was personally insulting. Rubbing his fist into his palms it was becoming increasingly clear that there was a confrontation brewing. Luke lifted up his stick in an intentionally nonchalant way while taking a few steps forward. "You really have faith in the rest of your team that when I beat the shit out of you they'll be there to back you up?" Looking back at the other three, it was obvious that they weren't as eager to fight as their supposed leader was. He seemed to come to that same conclusion after glancing back at his squad. Taking a few steps back and turning away, he shot Luke a dangerous look but left it at that as he walked away while pushing through the other three. One of them stopped and turned back.

"I just want to know what it was that we're fighting over." It was the other boy, a little smaller and with soft facial features which seemed to suggest he was still going through some changes. The other others quickly agreed with him and came closer but still kept their distance. Everyone stood in silence for a few excruciatingly long moments before Katana's voice echoed out.

"Hey, I've got it, is it safe?" Luke motioned for Dagger and Claymore to come with them as he walked away.

"We'll be back, I promise," he said as they walked off. Jogging slowly, his muscles already tightening up from the sprint earlier, they made their way towards the rocks as Katana came scrambling out of the rocks towards them, a metallic case gripped tightly in her hand. "Have you looked in it yet?"

"Nope, I just grabbed it and ran so hopefully this is it," she replied, her voice rushed either from the physical exertion or because of the anticipation of what they'd find. Setting the case down onto a relatively flat rock, she made sure it was sitting in the right direction before popping the two locks on it. Lifting up the silver lid, they were met with a thin layer of foam which she carefully removed. The four of them pushed in tighter as they waited with baited breaths to see what they'd got. Looking at what was beneath the layer they were shocked at what they had found. Four M6C Magnums nestled in a much larger cushion of foam. Luke reached out first and pulled the handgun out and could instantly tell that it was empty as the barrel rolled forward in his fingers. His heart sank as the thought came to him that they would have a weapon with nothing to fire but he noticed that the case was much deeper than the layer holding the weapon and so he lifted up the free corner and saw a magazine stored in a third layer of foam. Next to the black magazine was a small black device which he removed from it's slot and was quickly identified as a watch. Clicking the small, and only, button on the outside of the black disc a countdown appeared which was currently read "8:03:12" and dropping.

"Why would they give us weapons?" Katana asked. Dagger was the next one to remove a handgun and he popped out one of the magazines from below and began to examine the rounds held in it.

"They're not actual bullets. See?" he said, pointing at the plastic white cap that rested on top of the casing. "Looks like a training round. Basically, when you get hit by one of these it breaks open and then it sends a quick bolt of electricity through your body to incapacitate you for about ten minutes. I'm guessing we'll need these to get that flag."

"Yeah…seems like it," Luke said, his voice sounding a little detached as he was suddenly faced with firing a weapon. Snapping out of it, he grabbed his own magazine and slid the watch into his pocket. "Has anyone fired a pistol before?" Dagger nodded yes but both Claymore and Katana indicated they hadn't. "Alright, this is what you do." Showing them just the basics of what they'd have to do, he got each pistol ready to fire before flicking the safety on and handing it back to them. Pulling everything out of the case, he was a little dismayed to see that there were no holsters for them which would make carrying the weapons around awkward. Without a word they all seemed to suggest that they were ready to move on but Luke's promise came back to him. "Hang on, I promised we'd come back and show them what it was that we found."

"Are you sure you want to tell them that we got these things? Might make us enticing targets if they team up against us," Dagger offered smartly. Luke nodded and handed him his pistol while pulling out his watch.

"We don't need four of these things anyways," he said while waving it around.

"Take mine then," Claymore said quickly, tossing Luke his. Replying with a thanks, he jogged off towards the other group who was pacing around in the same spot. They perked up as he moved closer and he could feel their eyes examining him to see what he was bringing with him. "It wasn't much; just some stopwatches," he said as he extended his hand with the small disc. "We've got plenty to give out so you can take this one." The black haired boy reached for it hesitantly but finally relented and took it out of his palm.

"Thanks," he finally said as Luke was turning around. Facing the rocks, he was jolted by the sound of gunfire near them. Within a second one of the four in the other squad was yelping in pain as he heard a loud clicking sound coming from behind him, no doubt one of the bullets they had just found. Suddenly filled with adrenaline, he sprinted as hard as he could towards the rocks as the sounds of bullets picked at the dirt and grass around him.


	5. Eyes in the Sky

"Eyes in the Sky"

Captain Ambresio adjusted the small square monocle that he had strapped around his head so that the information he was looking at wasn't being distorted by a bad angle. He had made his way back into the belly of the D77-TC Pelican Dropship as it continued to make it's lazy patrols over the valley below. The red light inside the compartment was bathing the few officers sitting in the compartment monitoring communication channels and the locations of the recruits. Ambresio walked out to the open rear door and grabbed hold of the grip in the center of the frame where a weapon was typically mounted. Sitting over his left eye, the monocle marked the location of all of those participating in the first exercise of Project Tempest. His ODST Helljumpers had spread out into a number of squads that were quickly making their way towards the first group of recruits near a field. Enhancing the view, the image zoomed into the location and he could see that Team Earthquake was relatively near Team Hurricane which would be setting up an interesting situation as they inevitably moved towards the same objective. The monocle was attached to a small headset that hung on his left ear which was in turn attached to the wrist mounted computer that he brought up.

"Sergeant Nguyen, this is Captain Ambresio." A few seconds passed before he received a response.

"_This is Sergeant Nguyen, over_."

"Sergeant, we have two groups nearing each other near the objected stowed at grid Mike Two-Five. I want you to relocate to that position and intercept both teams. You have full permission to fire upon them once you have them in sight."

"_Roger that sir. Over and out._" Behind him he could hear the chatter within and between squads as well as the occasional sound bite from the thousands of microphones that had been planted throughout the valley, all of them tuned to pick up the faintest hint of noise.

"Pilot, I want you to take up a holding pattern over Mike Two-Five until further notice. I want a good view of the action." As he finished giving the order over the radio the Pelican lurched starboard and began to come back around, temporarily obscuring his view of the field. Glancing at the clock that they had placed in the Pelican he saw that they were getting close to ticking over eight hours left and while it would normally be a difficult but doable march for the lead teams to get to the flag in time with the squads constantly harassing and hunting them down he doubted any of the teams would get to the base on time. He only had six squads at his disposal but each one outnumbered the teams and they had the advantage of technology and an eye in sky. It was far from a fair fight, but it was something that the young soldiers would have to deal with, overcome, and eventually capitalize on. The Pelican had finally moved into a position that allowed him to view the field and he could see that something was brewing. Team Earthquake was moving towards the drop but Team Hurricane had a much better angle towards it and they were obviously going to capitalize on it. Zooming in again to get a better view, he watched a white triangle labeled as "K" dart out from the tree line and make it's way towards the rocks where the drop was marked on his HUD with an orange arrow. Earthquake seemed to notice this person and they began to move faster which only triggered the remainder of Team Hurricane to expose themselves.

"They're good," someone behind him yelled out over the engines and wind. The captain turned around to see who had said it and why. "They covered themselves in something; dirt or mud, and the three that are going out to Hurricane have sticks in their hands." One of the technicians sitting next to a few holographic displays was using the enhanced cameras mounted onto the Pelican to monitor the two groups as well. Ambresio focused in on the three and could see that they had covered up the white shirts and were armed. A smile cracked across his face as the thought of finding their all-stars this easily. He quickly pushed the thought away knowing that if they couldn't sustain these kinds of actions then they were no good to him. It wasn't long before the two groups were close to each other but the audio was too far away for him to hear what was being said.

"_Sir, we've located the targets, would you like us to open fire? Looks like they're having some sort of a meeting…_"

"Sergeant, I'd like you to hold your fire until I can see how this plays out. I'll give you an updated order ASAP." Watching from a few thousand feet up, Ambresio could only imagine what was going on and he watched as the member who had splintered off moving closer and closer to the drop, footsteps and the sound of a female breathing becoming audible. Waiting, he saw Earthquake begin to move away from Hurricane as one of the techs behind him relayed that the drop had been located and was being moved.

"_Hey! I've got it, is it safe?_" the girl yelled out. Hurricane moved back to their fourth member and convened around the case. Listening intently and genuinely enthused about what they were saying he heard something that he had to take advantage.

"Sergeant Nguyen, one of Team Hurricane's members is moving back into the open. When he's meeting with Earthquake I want you to open fire. Let's see how he adapts."

"_Roger that, sir._" He waited excitedly for the action to begin. Nguyen's men had lined up down the hill and were waiting at the edge of the opposite tree line from where the recruits had entered. Once the Hurricane member, marked with an "S" on the HUD, had completed the trade he gave the order. Six separate muzzle flashes blinked in succession as they fired at the five in the open. Ambresio was pleased as he watched Sword avoid the hail of bullets that incapacitated the entire Team Earthquake.

* * *

Pressing up as hard as he could against one of the black rocks that stood up in the air, Luke's mind went into overdrive as he tried to see where could go next. The fire had lessened since he had taken cover which seemed to indicate that whoever was attacking them had lost sight and were moving into a better position. Ahead of him was a much more cover and he resolved himself to run across the relatively small amount of open ground before he would be safe in the thick maze that the rest of the team had taken cover in. Counting down in his head from five, he stopped at three and let loose with as much as speed as he could, bounding across the open ground just as the gunfire picked up again. Rounds crashed into the rocks and dirt around him but he had gotten lucky again and hadn't been hit. Catching his breath he looked around to try and find the rest of his team.

"Hey, where are you guys?" he said in a loud whisper.

"Over here," Dagger replied to his right. Looking over, the three had taken cover behind a large rock that jutted up into the air. All of them had their pistols out and had "posted up" at the edge of it. "What are we going to do?"

"Hang on, I haven't had a chance to look at what we're up against. Can I have my gun?" Dagger nodded and placed it on the ground before pushing it across towards him. It fell a little short and Luke had to expose himself for a few seconds to get it but he didn't draw any fire. Clicking the safety off, he edged up to the corner of his rock and looked down the hill. He immediately noticed the six soldiers moving up the tree line and out into the field. It was obvious that they were being hunted and that running wouldn't do them any good. "We're going to need to fight them. We're armed and we've got the high ground. As long as we keep our wits about us we'll be good." There were a few seconds of silence from the other three.

"Whatever you think is right, we'll do it," Dagger replied, the trust sounding genuine. Luke smiled a little and watched as the six Helljumpers continued to move forward in a low crouch. Their only tactic was guerilla warfare, hitting them quickly and then disappearing before the enemy could figure out where they were at.

"Katana, did you get a chance to look at the rocks up above us?"

"Yeah, it's pretty much like this. I also saw the rock circle when I was looking, I think that if we can lure them up to there we'll be able to ambush them either as a group or pick them off one at a time."

"Sounds good. Dagger, I want you to lead the three of you up there and set up and ambush around the rock circle. I'm going to go down and lure them back up towards it, hopefully taking out at least one of them on the way. If I don't make it back though, I want the three of you to get out of here and try and complete the objective. As long as they don't take me prisoner or something I'll catch back up after the effects wear off." They nodded at this and he took a deep breath before returning the gesture. Rolling off the corner of the wall, he sprinted back down the hill while using the rocks around him as cover so as not to be spotted before he could get into position. It didn't take long for him to get down to the lowest rock and once he got there it was time to wait. Peeking around the corner of the black stone he caught a glimpse of the soldiers who were about fifty feet away from him. As he lay in wait, he began to notice something odd, like a tugging or pulling on his mind. It wasn't the first time he had felt the sensation but it was similar to the feeling he had when he was captured, knowing that it had helped him then he focused on the feeling. Looking to his left, he shifted silently to the other side of the rock but kept hidden. The feeling continued to get stronger and stronger almost to the point where he was able to "see" what it was that was coming towards him. Listening carefully he was able to hear the shuffling of grass and a few tell tale metallic clinks as equipment bounced around. Someone was trying to flank him. Judging by the strength of the sensation and the sounds he was hearing, the soldier was only a few feet away from him. Preparing to strike, he waited till he thought it was too late and whipped his left arm around the side of the rock with the pistol in his hand. For a moment Luke thought he had gone too early as he continued to swing through the air but then the butt of the pistol smashed into something soft and he heard a low grunt. Coming all the way out of cover he watched as the ODST fell to the ground, grabbing at his throat. He lunged towards the man and kicked him in the groin to stun him before Luke then jumped down onto his chest and whipped the man's helmet off. Gasping for air and coughing, Luke held the pistol up to show him he was armed as he swatted the BR55 he was carrying away. Ruffling through the different pouches of his web gear, Luke found a few zip ties that he pulled out and tossed onto the ground next to him.

"Hey…hey, take a deep breath and you'll be fine." Still coughing but seemingly able to breathe just fine Luke rolled the soldier onto his stomach and struggled to get his arms behind his back so that he could tie them together. Pressing his face into the dirt so that he couldn't yell out he moved down to his legs and did the same thing around his ankles. Grabbing a few wads of gauze, he stuffed one into his mouth and then wrapped the other around his head to keep him muffled. Flipping the soldier over onto his back, Luke grabbed the magazines that he was carrying and tossed his sidearm and knife out of reach in case he managed to get himself free. Wishing that he could take the web gear he had on he looked at it for a few seconds but could tell that it was secured to the armor plating beneath and wouldn't budge. Loaded up with two more magazines of pistol ammo that he tossed into his pockets and a spare clip for the BR55, Luke picked up the weapon and slung it across his chest pushed the soldier back against the rock and swiped his helmet. Without the miniscule tether that linked it to his backpack for power it was running on the internal batteries which wouldn't last forever but it would do as he slid it over his head. Much of the data was incorrect but he had what he wanted and that was a radio, motion detector, and night vision. There was a sudden urge on his part to rush towards the five remaining soldiers but he quickly clamped it down, knowing that if he was lucky he'd get one, maybe two of them before the rest realized what was going on. Slowly making his way back up the hill, he waited for them to say something to him.

"_Ramsey? What's going on over there?_" A voice finally chirped in over the internal speakers. Running back up the hill, he made a point of going into the open so that they could see him. It had obviously worked as another barrage of gunfire was let loose in his direction.

"_Was he wearing one of our helmets?_" a different voice asked over the radio.

"_I don't know but we're not going to take the chance. Stick to hand signals and external speakers_." Arriving back at where he met up with the rest of his team, he placed the pistol on the ground and shouldered the BR55. Back home he had fired some civilian assault rifles at friends' farms so he had a general idea of how the weapon worked but he didn't have any idea as to what it's capabilities were or how the sights were set up. Hoping everything was right, he brought the scope up to the glass faceplate and was surprised when an enlarged view was displayed on the HUD. It took a second to get used to it but he put the crosshairs onto the chest of one of the ODSTs who had appeared in the open as he made his way up the hill cautiously. Squeezing the trigger, three rounds erupted from the chamber and before he could see where they landed he squeezed off two more bursts while aiming at slightly different spots. Looking at where he was aiming, the ODST was lying on the ground jerking back and forth from the muscle spasms. Not wanting to stick around, he ran further up the hill as more bullets were shot in his direction. Despite his muscles beginning to reach their limit and the burning feeling creeping into his chest Luke continued to push himself as he made his way up to the top of the hill. The rock circle finally came into few and he yelled out to the rest of Team Hurricane so that they knew it was him.

"It's me, Sword! Hold your fire!" He didn't see anything for a few seconds before Katana startled him as she appeared from behind a small rock to his left.

"Hey," she said quietly.

"Hey," Luke replied, catching his breath.

"We set up like this, I'm going to lead them towards the back of the rock circle where you'll be waiting. Dagger and Claymore are at angles to shoot in towards them once we've got eyes on."

"Sounds good. Just be careful alright, they're probably pretty pissed about what I did." Her face contorted a little when he said this, clearly worried. "I beat the shit out of one of them to get this," he said, motioning towards the rifle, "and I lit up the other one as I was coming up here. They're going to be looking for revenge." She nodded weakly and they kept their eyes locked as he jogged back towards the rear of the stone circle. Finding a good spot behind one of the pillars he looked around to see the others, Claymore giving a short wave off in the distance to mark his position but Luke couldn't spot Dagger. Eyes focused on Katana, he hoped they were making the right decision with this plan but he quickly cut that train of thought off knowing that there was nothing left that they could do. Voices echoed softly as the soldiers walked the last few feet towards Katana which prompted her to peel away from the rock and make a beeline towards his position. Two of the soldiers appeared and immediately opened fire on her. He was about to stand up and shoot but he had no clear firing lane and was forced to watch as dirt kicked up around her, face grimacing. Startling him, she collapsed to the ground and began to convulse from the impact of a bullet. His initial reaction was to run out and help her but it wouldn't do them and good so he resorted to tightening his grip around the pistol grip of the rifle until the other two showed themselves. The next few seconds seemed like an eternity as his eyes focused on the two triangles that hadn't appeared from behind cover. Hands shaking in a combination of anger and adrenaline, Luke began to scan the surroundings as the triangles remained completely stationary. Something caught his eye near the edge of the rock and he saw the shape of a soldier moving in the direction of his teammate.

"Dagger! Watch your 12 o'clock! You've got incoming!" They obviously knew that he would be able to watch their every move and had abandoned their transponders. Worrying about the unaccounted for fourth soldier Luke was forced to leave his cover and head around the opposite side of the rock circle, unsure if Dagger had his back. Sure enough, as he rounded the corner he saw the Helljumper coming up on Dagger who was crouched down behind a small rock with his pistol trained on the two soldiers near the front of the circle, unaware of the approaching enemy. Taking his chances, Luke lifted the rifle and fired off two quick bursts, dropping him.

"What are you doing!?" Dagger yelled at him as Luke continued to look at him, rifle shouldered. Taking his hand off the front handgrip he pointed to the twitching body as proof of what he was doing. Not willing to waste time to explain his actions he located the other two soldiers as the sound of a pistol firing echoed through the nighttime air. Sighting them, he fired off a few quick bursts which found their target as a fifth ODST was incapacitated. The three of them quickly converged on the soldier as he remained hidden behind a rock and dispatched of him with ease.

"I need to check on Katana, I want you two to strip them of all their gear and then tie them up with the zip ties they've got in their pouches. Pile up everything and wait for me to come back over." Dagger and Claymore set about tearing all of the gear off of the soldiers while he went over to tend to Katana. She still lay in the center of the circle but now she was motionless after the effects of the bullet had worn off. In a contorted position, he knelt down next to her and gently placed her head on his thighs as he rubbed his thumb across her temple. "Katana…can you hear me? I need you to wake up." She didn't respond and he put his ear near her mouth to make sure she was breathing, and then checked her pulse. She seemed to fine so he continued to call her name as she remained limp and motionless. Looking at the other two, they had accumulated a large pile of gear that was still growing. A few minutes passed before he rubbed his hands across her face harder and he saw her eyes flutter a little. "Are you awake?" he asked quietly.

"Yeah…yeah…what happened?"

"They got you when you were leading them into the open. You weren't running fast enough," he replied with a quiet laugh. She smiled weakly although she had closed her eyes again and seemed to be resting in his arms. "We're going to need to get going soon, are you going to be able to move?"

"I don't think so, my arms and legs still hurt," she said with a groan.

"Alright, then I'll carry you, but first I need to dress you up to look like an ODST. We're getting their gear now so just hang tight and I'll bring it back over to you in a few minutes." She nodded weakly again and he held her head and back in his arms as he slid away, lowering her down onto the matted grass. Jogging over to the pile of equipment that they had collected he began to sort through it so that it was in four separate piles. Like Luke had asked, they had stripped them down to their skivvies which would give them everything they would need to look like a Helljumper, at least from the distance. Beginning with the pants, he figured out how each piece of armor went on and strapped it all on one at a time. The three helped each other out as they went and within a few minutes they looked like the soldiers that had attacked them, if not a little unprofessional with parts not matching and the sizes being wrong. Grabbing a handful of gear, he headed back towards Katana who was sitting up with her arms steadying herself. "Here ya go," he said as he set the stuff down next to her.

"Thanks." She held out her hand for him to help her to her feet and in one swift motion he had pulled her up against his shoulder. "I think I'll be able to manage to get this on," she said with a laugh, noticing his lingering around.

"Sorry, I wasn't sure, I'll be over there." She laughed a little and nodded okay as he walked over towards Dagger and Claymore. He kept their attention drawn away from her as he went over the computer systems that they now had at their disposal. It only took her a few minutes to get fully suited before she walked over towards them, noticeably stiffer and slower than before. "Are you guys ready to go?" The others nodded and Luke led the way as he walked away from the stone circle.

* * *

"What just happened down there?" Ambresio asked, turning around to the technicians behind him. They all remained silent as he looked each one in the eye but receiving nothing from them. "Please tell me that a bunch of sixteen year olds didn't just take out an entire squad of Helljumpers." Obviously that was what had just happened but Ambresio didn't want to believe it. In fact, he wasn't even angry at the kids but rather at the soldiers who had superior equipment and the intelligence from above.

"I'm registering some discrepancies from the soldiers and their equipment, looks like they're taking it." Ambresio laughed a little when he heard this, amused at their ingenuity and pleased that they seemed to be thinking on their feet. Having watched Sword react to the flanking maneuver they tried to pull on him in the way that he did seemed to confirm their suspicions true that he was one of the gifted ones they had been looking for. He released the pilot from their current holding pattern and told him to get into the original so that they could get a better look at the rest of the valley. With Team Hurricane fully armed and aware of the squads hunting them down, Captain Ambresio suddenly wasn't sure who was going to be having the longer night. The Helljumpers or the recruits.


	6. The End of a Long Day

"The End of a Long Day"

4:21:53. Flipping the stopwatch around in his gloved fingers, Luke kept his eyes on the green numbers that were glowing in the darkness that surrounded him. They had been walking non-stop since leaving the stone circle and while he still had enough energy to continue moving forward the others had begun to slow down and needed a rest. He had propped himself up against a small tree and agreed to stay awake and keep watch while they rested, Katana curled up and motionless next to him. To pass the time he switched his radio onto passive mode (something that took a few minutes of navigating the computer system to discover) and listened to the other Helljumpers chatter amongst each other. It seemed like things were calming down a little as the night dragged on into the morning but it wouldn't surprised Luke if everything exploded at once relatively soon. 4:17:39. The darkness and the silence had begun to lead his mind down a path he didn't want to travel as he thought about what his family was doing as they coped with the supposed loss of their son and only child. He was oddly at ease with the thought of being in the military because it was something he had always assumed he'd be a part of sooner or later but the method of joining wasn't how he had hoped. Sitting with his legs slightly apart with his knees up to his chest, arms resting on the metallic plates, he took a deep sigh before glancing at the clock one last time. 4:15:17. Pushing himself up and shaking his legs to get the blood flowing back into his joints, he knelt over to Katana and gently shook her left shoulder. She stirred as he shook her a little more and wiped the brown hair away from her face while staring up at him with those blue eyes.

"We've got to get going again," he whispered before walking over to Dagger and Claymore who had sacked out next to a thick grouping of ferns. He was much more forceful in waking them as he spoke louder and didn't listen to their unconscious protests. "Can't stay in one place for too long, there are a lot more squads patrolling the valley and they're capturing those that they get a hold of." Waiting for them to shake the sleep from their systems, Luke pulled out the computer strapped to his back and began to find his way through the menu system to find some sort of detailed map. It took a little bit but he finally got a satellite image of the region with their positions displayed on the image along with other points of interest. Zooming in, he could see that they weren't incredibly far from the flag, maybe 2 hours at a steady speed. The only problem was that there seemed to be a large road that cut across the valley that was made even more dangerous by the land that had been cleared on either side of it. He also saw that there was a small trail that splintered off from the main road that headed up towards the flag and their base just north of it. Even dressed as an ODST he wasn't confident that they'd be able to pass themselves off as soldiers if pressed. Gnawing on his lip in silence and in the seclusion of his helmet he slotted the computer back into it's holster on his back and turned towards the others. "We're pretty close to the flag. One last push and we'll be there."

"Sounds good, let's get this show on the road," Claymore said as he walked past the others.

* * *

Trudging through the thick underbrush of the forest, Team Hurricane had made great time as they arrived at a small cliff that provided them with a great view of the terrain ahead of them, including the road that had been plaguing Luke's mind as they walked. Standing at the lip of the stone wall that was just high enough to put them above the tree line, he could see that the road would cause them problems.

"Shit...how are we going to get past that?" Dagger mused out loud while the others remained silent. Lights had been placed at intervals along the road, illuminating it and a large portion of the clearing in bright white halogen light that would make getting across the area undetected nearly impossible. Scanning back and forth, Luke was trying to find a hole in the security, some light that was out or a dead zone but the road was long with very few corners, perfect for an ambush.

"I'm not sure," he finally admitted, sounding defeated. "It's just too dangerous for us to try and run across that area because I'm sure the other squads have heard about our little run in with their friends." Standing up on the ledge was beginning to make Luke nervous so he shifted his focus to the immediate and finding a way down.

"Hey…what's that?" Katana was pointing her hands out towards some black objects moving along the road. Luke immediately recognized the silhouettes as belonging to two Warthogs that were driving along the road from the west. He watched them make their way along the road before stopping near the path that went up north, parked off in the short cut grass off to the side of the dirt road.

"Trap, or divine intervention?" Luke said with a little laugh.

"At the moment I'll take either one," Dagger joked back. Walking along the edge of the cliff, the four teens found a shallower slope and quickly made their way down to the forest floor below. Moving at a much faster clip, they covered the ground from the cliff in a little over twenty minutes. As they got closer to the Warthogs, two blue triangles popped up on his HUD to mark their location which hadn't changed since they first parked. The lights began to cut through the trees and the brush which illuminated everything in a ghostly glow while casting long shadows across the underbrush. Luke had the team stop a safe distance away to make sure they were ready to push forward and look like ODSTs.

"This is what we're going to do…as we walk towards them, make sure you look confident because if we're supposed to be real ODSTs we're not going to be scurrying around from tree to tree. Once we get there we're just going to take the Warthogs for ourselves."

"Then what?" Dagger asked. Luke paused for a few seconds and looked around in the darkness a little bit.

"Not sure. I'm figuring this out as I go." The others laughed nervously at this but it was true that he didn't have any sort of a plan in place in case this one didn't work out. Standing up and checking everything on him, he started to walk forward towards the edge of the trees as confidently as possible. He was thankful that he was kept hidden beneath the helmet as the sweat from the sudden stress was beginning to form along his skin and he was sure that someone would be able to see his heart pounding in his throat. Emerging from the tree line and into the darkness just outside the rings of light, he made sure there were no other vehicles heading in their direction before stepping out into the light. Across from them were the two Warthogs with four men standing around in front of them in a small circle. As they stepped onto the road, the four Marines turned to look at them with sour looks on their face.

"What the fuck are you doing out here?" One of them said, tossing a cigarette into the dirt. Luke didn't respond for a few seconds but realized that his silence would give them away.

"We're heading towards the flag to set up an ambush," he said loudly, his voice amplified over the helmet's speakers. He held his breath as the Marines analyzed his answer which they seemed to accept as they turned their backs to them. Scanning their hips and thighs, Luke saw that only two of them had side arms on them with two BR55s resting in the passenger's seat of the two Warthogs. Changing direction subtly as he walked parallel to the road with the Marines standing about twenty feet away, Luke stopped suddenly and lifted his rifle up towards them. "Everyone step away from each other and keep your hands in the air!" he yelled out. Startled but looking at them as if it was a joke, the Marines turned to face the four teens and were met at first with a single rifle pointed in their direction which quickly turned into four BR55s. Slowly they relented as the two unarmed Marines stepped away from the other two with their hands in the air while the two who had weapons put one arm up while the other slowly went down to the holster which was unclipped. Tossing the pistols onto the ground, they both kicked them away and separated further. "Turn around." Again they listened as he started to walk forwards towards them, motioning for Claymore to come with him. Confident that Dagger and Katana had their backs, he swung his rifle against his chest and pulled out the last of his zip ties to use on the Marines. Clasping their hands behind their back and their ankles together, he pushed them towards the other side of the road and into the darkness so that no one would see them flopping around at a glance. Now that they had the Warthogs at their disposal it was time for them to figure out what they were going to do with them. "Forgot that transport Hog," Luke said, waving his hand at it as if to make it disappear from his sight. He made his way towards the other vehicle, the LAAG pointed skyward, and leaned into the driver's seat and was glad to see the ignition codes had been saved to the vehicle and only needed a simple button press to bring it back to life.

"What are you thinking?" Katana asked, her voice slightly distorted by the helmet's external speakers. She had repositioned herself near him as he began to toss out a few pieces of junk that the soldiers had brought with them to make as much room as possible.

"Right now…I'm not really sure. I'm tempted to say we roll in guns blazing but I'm positive we'll get taken out that way. With these uniforms we'll have an element of surprise, however small it may be, and we need to use that our advantage as long as possible. We just don't have the time to spend scouting ahead and coming back to come up with a plan…we've got to go now." Luke hung his head low as this reality set in. Tapping his knuckles on the olive green skin of the Warthog he felt Katana place her hand on a bare portion of his shoulder and squeeze softly.

"Then we go now." Luke remained motionless for a few seconds before finally nodding his head in agreement.

"Alright, everyone come over here." He waited a few seconds for Claymore and Dagger to circle up with Luke and Katana so that he could explain what they're going to do. "We're only going to get one shot at this so we've got to make it count. Katana, I want you to drive, Dagger in the passenger seat, and Claymore on the LAAG. It's pretty simple, we're going to drive into the base and once we've located it I'll jump out and grab and then we'll high tail it out of there. Honestly…I wish I had a better plan but without any idea of what we're up against this is the best we can do."

"Hey man, you've gotten us this far, there's no reason to suddenly doubt you know," Dagger said, stepping forward with his words of encouragement. Luke nodded in thanks and motioned for them to get moving. He helped Claymore up onto the back of the Warthog and then strapped him into the LAAG before taking a seat on the rear bumper as it rumbled to life. Katana throttled the engine and turned back onto the road as she drove towards the path that headed up north to the camp. It only took a few minutes before they arrived at the path and made the turn onto the potholed riddle path that quickly made Luke regret sitting on the unforgiving metal. Leaning back, he got Claymore's attention and spoke as softly as he could while still being audible.

"The minute they're onto us, I want you to start firing this thing in bursts up in the air. It should keep their head down for a few seconds which might be all we need."

"Got it boss." Looking back over the rest of the valley, Luke could see the first signs of morning coming over the edges of the mountain tops, a soft pinkish glow that was slowly invading the blue sky in the west. Bringing out the watch from his pocket it read 1:32:54 but despite the amount of time they had at their disposal Luke couldn't help but feel rushed and out of time.

"I can see lights ahead," Katana chimed in over the radio a few minutes later. Luke twisted in his seat to see bright white light filtering through the low branches and bushes off in the distance.

"Katana, I want you slow it down as we approach and describe the surroundings as best you can, focusing mainly on that flag. Once you've got a clear shot at the thing give me a heads up and then haul ass towards it; I'll hop off and grab it and then we'll figure it out from there." She didn't respond but he knew that she was going to follow his plan, even if she didn't agree with it. The drive towards the base entrance seemed like an eternity as the lights remained in the distance until they were suddenly bathed in the halogen lamps that ringed the low chain link fence.

"Six buildings arranged in a rough circle. Made of wood with a gap between the ground and floor. I see another entrance on the other side of the compound, two guards waiting there. I count…ten, eleven guards patrolling with a few more inside of the buildings, all of them armed with BR55s. The flag is in the center of the buildings with two more guards standing near it." Stealing a quick glance at the camp to back up the information that Katana was giving him with his own mental image, Luke centered his gaze on the flag before wheeling back around.

"Do you think you can make it between those buildings?"

"No, they're angled inwards and it look too narrow to get through without possibly getting caught."

"Fuck…alright. I'm going to hop off once we're inside the base and try and get as close to the flag as possible without drawing attention. You guys drive around to the other side of the compound and make a distraction. If you don't see me coming directly to you, get out of there and we'll meet up near the drop off point." Again, he heard silence from the others but he knew they'd do their part. Letting his rifle hang at his hip he hopped off the rear bunker as the guards waived them through and closed the gate without so much as a moment's hesitation. Quickly getting his bearings, Luke meandered in the direction of the barracks without appearing to be making a beeline in the direction of the flag. Across the compound the Warthog came to a stop and the rest of his team waited in their seats while appearing to get different belongings in order before getting out of the car.

"Hey, you look lost." Startled by the person speaking to him Luke turned to his left and was greeted by another ODST standing close to him, right hand slowly massaging the grip of his rifle.

"Oh…no, just stretching my legs after the trip. The bumper isn't the most comfortable spot to ride on for a few hours." The soldier cocked his head to the side slightly when Luke said this. He instantly began to beat himself up. He'd given up more information than was asked and on top of that he wasn't sure if it was accurate.

"Wasn't there supposed to be a transport Hog with you guys as well?"

"Yeah, it broke down a little bit before we got here. We'll need to send some boys down there to get it up and running again." The man he was speaking to nodded and turned away to go find some help and Luke let out the breath that he had been holding the entire time. Inside the gloves his hands were drenched in sweat and shaking from the adrenaline that was pumping through his veins. Taking a breath to settle the lump that had formed there, his heart stopped when the man about-faced and began to walk back towards Luke.

"Say…Nguyen…weren't you and your boys assigned to the field? What are you doing riding a Hog in from Camp Georgia?"

"What was that?" Luke asked, his voice barely working but his brain firing on all cylinders. He slowly moved his hand to his rifle while leaning in as if unable to hear, the soldier still coming closer. When he was less than an arm's length away, Luke lunged out with the butt of his rifle and smashed it into the side of his helmet. Despite preparing for the attack Luke was still caught off guard at the ferocity of his lunge and was worried for a few seconds that he had killed the man. This fear was relieved when he fell to the ground groaning and moving slowly. Not wishing to stick around too much longer, he began sprinting in towards the center of the compound to grab the flag. Thankfully Claymore must've seen this move as the LAAG begun to spit out rounds in increasing increments, cutting through the relative quiet of the night. Enormous yellow flames licked away from the tri-barreled gun while a tracer round whisked off into the purple sky. The burst only lasted a few seconds but it was enough to cause the soldiers to duck out of the way of the gun and begin to move towards them. Luke took this opportunity to down at least two guards and quickly popped off two bursts at the defenders of the flag, incapacitating them with the stun rounds as they limply felt to the ground while occasionally twitching. During this time, Katana had begun to drive the Warthog around the base while Dagger fired off burst after burst from his BR55 and Claymore popped off a few rounds from his pistol along with firing the LAAG gun whenever the Helljumpers got too exposed, all of them ducking behind the nearest cover when the chugging of the gun echoed around. When the Warthog made it's first lap, Luke couldn't help but smile when he saw Katana driving the vehicle with one arm while she shot a few rounds off with her pistol at some troops on their left side. Luke didn't have time to stand idle and so he dashed for the flag which was just a small piece of red cloth cut into a triangle attached to a short metal rod slotted into a small base. Yanking it out of it's base, he was startled to hear a series of alarms blare around him while even more lamps switched on from the buildings which were pointed directly at him. Without a moment's hesitation he began to run towards the building across from him near where the two guards had fallen, just as there was a sudden barrage of bullets around him. Pinned up against the wood planks, he tore the flag off of the pole and shoved it into one of his pockets to free up his hand as he began to send rounds down range at troops who braved the Warthog rampaging around and had gone into the relative safety of the buildings. Each one fell into a heap as their muscles jerked back and forth. Standing up against the opposite side of the building that was facing the other gate, Luke knew that his position wouldn't be safe for long so he faced the wall of the building and examined the wood quickly. He had originally assumed it was built from local materials but he saw now that it was just plain old plywood and was confident it wouldn't last long against an assault. Taking a few steps back, he smashed his right leg through the wood and pulled it back out, kicking in another hole near it. He broke the piece in between and forced himself through the hole and into the barracks. Inside it was the definition of Spartan with only ten bunks lined up against the walls with matching lockers at the feet. Thankfully it was vacated so he kept low and moved forward, stopping occasionally as rounds tore through the paper thin walls. Moving near the door, he was surprised to see that the small group of ODSTs that could easily see him held their fire so he did the same, listening to the drone of the Warthog as it made it's way around the back side of the base, relative to where he was. Eyeing the forest in front of him and the large amount of brush and cover that was there he formulated his escape plan. Dashing across the road to the other ODSTs, he slid in behind the green metal supply crates they were ducking behind.

"Katana, after you come around again I want you to drive out through the other exit, the one we didn't come in through. As you come by I'm going to give you guys the flag and duck out into the forest and then meet up at the rendezvous point," he said over their team channel.

"_Affirmative_." He wasn't really expecting a response so hearing her speak to him was a welcome sound. Repositioning behind the other ODSTs he raised his rifle and spoke.

"Any of you move and I beat the shit out of you and then pop your friends." They remained still as he stepped back a few feet and pulled the flag out of the pouch as the Warthog angled away from another lap. Claymore was firing off another burst but the end of the bandolier was visible and the gun began to spin down when the last few rounds flew out, the barrel glowing orange. Standing almost in front of the Warthog, he extended his left arm as it passed by and slammed the flag into Katana's chest before releasing his grip, letting the momentum spin him around so that he was facing away from the camp. Without missing a beat he sprinted as fast as he could while his muscles responded to every demand, the adrenaline coursing through his veins nullifying any pain he'd be feeling once everything calmed down. Almost leaping into the thick bushes to the right side of the road he continued at the same pace as he smashed through the thick undergrowth that stabbed into his legs and torso while nettles tugged at his uniform and tore through to his clothes underneath. All around him bullets continued to whiz past as they cut through the leaves and broke twigs apart but still he continued to push forward, refusing to look back. Coming over a small hill, he could see his destination only about a hundred yards away but just as his mind began to celebrate his escape it was wiped clean when something smashed into the back of his helmet. His vision went completely white with pain for a second before he blinked a few times and was face to face with the dirt and fallen leaves on the forest floor. The nerves in his bodies screamed at his brain in pain and felt twitchy and over responsive but he was glad to know that he could still control himself. Rolling onto his back, he braced his rifle between his legs and squeezed off four bursts before the ammo counter read empty. He hoped that his shots of desperation would give him enough time to get cover and it seemed like it as he pushed himself behind a tree and pulled his pistol out of the holster. The ammo counter on his HUD switched over to the pistol and read a full clip along with a spare stored in a pouch giving him a total of 24 rounds. Glancing out towards the base he wasn't confident that that would be enough to get him there. Guessing by the tingling and pain he was still feeling throughout his body he'd been hit but a stun round but either it was a glancing blow or the helmet nullified most of it's effect. Either way, he needed to move from his current position or risk getting rushed by his pursuers. Counting to three in his head he pushed off of the tree and began to smash through the brush again while the bullets continued snap past him and into the tree with a small explosion of bark and wood. When he was about fifty yards away from the clearing that led to the second base he saw a an ODST running full sprint right at him. There was a sudden urge to bring his pistol to bear on him but he fought it off and continued to run forward.

"_Sword! Just hang in there!_" Dagger's voice called out over his radio while the soldier gave a short wave. The two of them met up as Dagger slowed down and took a knee before squeezing off some measured bursts. Luke spun around and gripped the pistol with both hands as he aimed at the nearest Helljumper, firing off four rounds in his direction, the third striking him in the chest as he collapsed into the bushes. "C'mon, we're not going to be able to take them all on." The two boys turned away from their pursuers and made it to the clearing unharmed. The base was almost identical to the one that they had just assaulted, the Warthog parked at an odd angle in front of the gate while Claymore and Katana waited inside next to a unarmed and unarmored soldier.

"Hey, thanks for the help," Luke said as they slowed to a jog.

"Don't mention it. I know you'd be there for me so I figured I'd just preemptively return the favor." Luke laughed a little and met up with the rest of their team. Luke recognized the man as Captain Ambresio, the man from the day before. He looked even more intimidating up close and personal, all of his battle scars showing on his weathered face. Standing in silence and with no expression on his face, Luke could still see that he was legitimately surprised at the four ODSTs standing in front of him. Katana handed Luke the flag who offered it to Ambresio, extending his arm and taking it from Luke.

"Congratulations, I'm sure the four of you are probably a little hungry."

* * *

Lieutenant June squeezed off a single burst at the black shape that was squarely in the middle of his sights. A split second later he saw some sparks shoot off the rear of the ODST helmet as the kid felt to the ground.

"Oh yeah," he said aloud, congratulating himself on the shot. Running forward to claim his prize, he pushed past the other ODSTs who were streaming out of the camp in an attempt to save face by at least capturing one of the kids, thereby nullifying the inevitable flag capture. No one really knew how they had infiltrated them as everyone who knew was still a blabbering mess but at that point in time he didn't really care why it went wrong or who let it get to this point as long as they solved it. But just as he was about to get close to the kid bullets came flying past him as muzzle flashes shredded some nearby leaves. "That little fucker!" he yelled out loud enough to be heard even without his speakers on. Avoiding the bursts as his prey ducked behind a tree, the rifle being tossed to the side, June picked up his pace again and set his mind to getting around the tree before he had time to run away. But when he was no more than twenty feet away, the kid tore out of cover and ran away from them, looking as if nothing had hit him just a few seconds before. Bordering on blind rage, June tried to fire off a few more shots but heard the disheartening clicking of an empty magazine. Slowing down to eject the magazine and slot in a new one, he'd lost precious time as his target met up with a previously unseen ally. Not thinking clearly, he continued to run fire as the two of them began to fire back at them. The last thing he heard before going unconscious was the sound of three gunshots and two bullets snapping past his ears.


	7. What You Are

"What You Are"

Luke's hands were straining to keep the sights on Nicole's chest as they stood in silence along the water's edge. The fall air had a soft bite to it as the first storms from Alaska began to make their way south towards Seattle, covering the starry sky in a cloud layer that glowed a myriad of colors from the buildings below. Despite all of this, Luke was beginning to perspire as his forehead began to shimmer and his hands became clammy, a single bead of sweat rolling down the small of his back uncomfortably.

"You're not very sure, are you?" Nicole asked after a few seconds of silence had passed and he had still not shot her. Something was changing inside of him, he wasn't thinking straight and no matter how many times he tried to center himself and return to the objectives of his mission he was sidetracked. Doubt was beginning to permeate his limbs with each beat of his heart making the trigger pull heavier and heavier. Why was she being denied a trial? Why did she do what she did? Why couldn't he complete his mission? Why, why why. The realization that he wasn't going to be able to kill her quickly became real and he returned to a resting stance while he let his pistol drop to his side but ready to fire off a few rounds within a split second if needed. "When you see things from my side everything is different. There's no good, no bad, there just _is._ But I'm sure you sleep well knowing how many bad guys you've killed." Her last sentence was said with a palpable disdain that forced Luke to respond.

"No…no, I don't sleep well."

* * *

Over the following weeks the kids had been pushed to their physical limits and then beyond them as they ran miles after miles each day before going directly into obstacle courses and other physical training exercises. The pace was grueling and it wasn't too much of a surprise to see someone fall behind either because of injuries or because they gave up only to disappear completely, their few personal possessions missing by the time they got back to the barracks. Everything was a culture shock to them as the teens were forced to live with the opposite gender in almost completely exposed environments. Their living quarters were entirely utilitarian with an open bathroom that forced them to expose themselves to each other, a concern that quickly became a non-issue when compared to the near torture they were enduring every day at the hands of Lieutenant June and his ODSTs. The physical pain was beginning to bring about changes as muscles became large and more toned, their bodies adjusting more and more to the running and other physical activities that seemed to replace a traditional weight room, all of this led to the ODSTs leading them on longer and longer runs and demanding more from their bodies. Almost more taxing on the recruits was the mental rigors they were forced to endure. Most of the tests also involved physical activities but they were regularly woken up in the middle of the night to be taken out on a run only to be punished when they returned for not being in their barracks. What meals they were given constantly changed along with the few clocks constantly bouncing between different times. It even seemed like the buildings moved about the gravel camp whenever they were gone, all of this created an environment of uneasiness and unpredictability that never let them get comfortable or get into a rhythm. The physical and mental stress had transformed them from carefree teens into focused and physically impressive soldiers in just under three months.

Clicking the adjustment dials on his BR55 scope, Luke centered the small red "x" onto the paper target that sat a over a hundred yards out and clicked his rifle over to semi-automatic and steadied his breathing while slightly shifting on his stomach. His left hand rubbed a small hole into the ground as he kept the barrel almost rock steady. The lessons they'd been taught during classroom discussions and hands on practice were becoming ingrained into his muscles and the process was nearly automatic. Luke was finally comfortable with where he was at held his breath for a split second while he squeezed the trigger and sent a round down range. The muzzle flash kicked up a small amount of dirt that obscured his scope so he flicked the safety on and rest the rifle on a sandbag next to him while he rolled onto his side to look at his spotter, Katana.

"Hit," she said, her eye still glued to the large monocular while she fiddled with the focus quickly. She remained silent for a few more seconds while concentrating intensely on the target.

"C'mon Kat, the suspense is killing me," he said dryly while craning his neck back to vainly look at the target.

"Center mass, just off of the heart. Probably would've broken a rib." Luke nodded to himself, pleased at his shooting. The firing range had been cut through a forest north of the camp and was much quieter than normal as the recruits, now only numbering 26, were practicing their sharpshooting skills during an afternoon range day. Getting up onto his knees, Luke wiped the dirt off of his forest ACUs and prepared to give the slot over to Katana so that she could practice when they were interrupted.

"Assemble now! Ten! Nine! Eight! Seven!" Lieutenant June was standing behind them all yelling out the time for them to assemble in front of him. It was never enough time and whatever he wanted would have to wait as they got down and did push-ups until he was satisfied they'd learned their lesson for the millionth time. He was lenient today, only forcing them to do twenty push-ups before telling them to recover. By this time the push-ups were nothing more than an annoyance and Luke jumped back up with his forehead getting a little clammy and his heart beating only marginally faster. "There's going to be a change in today's schedule," the Lieutenant said as he paced back and forth almost uneasily. "All of you are going to head to the classroom for a lecture. Fall out!" They quickly collapsed into two columns as they ran back through the trail towards the camp. Without any handlers around them the chatter grew as people began to hypothesize what they were heading to.

"Think this is just another game?" a guy named Porsche asked, a member of the team that was named after old sports car manufacturers almost as if it was a cruel joke.

"Nah, have you ever seen Junebug so awkward before?" someone else responded up ahead. There was some more chatter between them while they jogged back towards the camp.

"What are you thinking Sword?" Claymore asked from behind, genuinely interested in what it was that he had to say about the situation.

"I don't know, Clay. Something feels a little off, doesn't it?"

"Got that right," Dagger chimed in to complete the group. Despite regularly getting separated from each other, the four team members of Hurricane always had a knack for finding each other even in the darkest of places. Emerging in the camp, they immediately headed for the stocky classroom building and piled into the sparse interior. There were eight long tables arranged end to end with four chairs seated at each. The teams all stood next to their chairs like statues looking straight ahead at the front of the classroom silently. Luke always found it interesting to see how the teams came together day after day as recruits were removed from the program and their absence forced some restructuring. By this point in time they had lost one team completely, Team Tornado, after it became the catch all for those left without a squad to call home and with Tornado gone Team Monsoon had picked up the mantle, the same team that they had encountered during their first exercise.

"Ten…HUT!" In an instant all of them snapped to attention as an officer walked into the classroom and made his way to the front of the room; it was Captain Ambresio. Typically whenever the Captain came to a classroom it was to describe some of the battles he'd been in prior to being assigned to training them and overseeing the local military installations. These discussions were also usually more laid back as he recounted humorous moments on the battlefield and just the general life of a soldier. But this time Luke could sense he was in a different mood and that this would be more than just story time from an aging soldier.

"Take your seats," he said as if they were mere annoyances to him. Waiting a few seconds for the commotion of the chairs to die down he began to speak. "I'm sure by now all of you have realized that this isn't just some regular boot camp and that you won't be just some regular soldiers. The past few months are but a fraction of the time you'll be spent training and honing your craft as each of you find your specialization and are trained to be expert warriors, above and beyond the regular military that is fighting this very moment to give us time for you to be implemented." Ambresio paused for a few seconds as he paced back and forth before he stopped near the board and leaned up against it, his legs crossed at the ankles while he folded his arms across his urban ACUs that he wore. "Every one of you, even those that fell behind, were specially picked for this program and those above me have decided that it's time to tell you why. I'm not the best man for that so we have a visitor and her name is Dr. Allara." Everyone in the class turned to face the door as a young woman walked through the center aisle to the front of classroom. She had a petite body that was kept hidden by the olive drab military uniform, a skirt that stopped right at her knees with a matching blouse that remained close to her body but didn't reveal much. Luke noticed that her jet black hair was grown beyond regulations and slipped below her shoulders and she had no cover in her hands or slipped under a shoulder slot. He also noticed that she had no rank insignias on her shoulders or sleeves which seemed to indicate she was a civilian doctor who had been brought in to oversee the project. Her soft brown eyes seemed to be very inviting and matched her slightly tanned skin perfectly.

"Hello," she said softly, a smile revealing a perfect set of teeth behind her thin pink lips. "My name is Doctor Trisha Allara and I'm the lead for Project Typhoon which you're currently all in. There really isn't an easy way to start so I'll just do my best to explain everything as best I can. For hundreds of years science and medicine have shown that Humans are occasionally capable of superhuman feats that just can't be controlled or replicated consciously. We have had quite a few reported instances of people lifting hundreds of pounds when they're in danger or running at full speed far longer than any person could reasonably maintain. Another thing that we've always wanted to control was the general term of ESP, extra-sensory perception. A few years ago, the UNSC commissioned a study for a theoretical project that would create a sort of soldier who had both superior brain power and strength and endurance. It's entire purpose was to find a practical exploitation of these abilities in select individuals that went beyond sub-conscious self-preservation that could be controlled and manipulated when needed. To say that the project was a success would be an understatement. That single project managed to uncover all of stimuli and areas of the brain that control what can essentially be described as super-human abilities which allowed engineers to create a collection of devices that trick the brain into believing that it must activate these hidden abilities without any adverse side effects thanks to a number of medical procedures that were performed that helped strengthen the muscles and bones of the body to withstand these typically momentary forces." Allara stopped for a few seconds as everyone in the room remained motionless. Luke was a little confused at all of this but was beginning to get an idea of what it was she was trying to get at and was interested in hearing more. "We all discovered that there are a series of genetic markers that made some candidates much more likely to unlock these abilities compared to others. All of you displayed these markers which is why you're all here. You are the UNSC's next generation of special warfare soldiers. In about a year, after you've had more training, we'll perform a number of surgeries on you that will allow you to control your body like you never imagined. And to further augment your abilities, you will be given a specially designed combat skin that will make you unstoppable." After a steadily increasing volume and excitement, Allara returned to her unassuming self as she thanked Ambresio and made her way through the rows of desks and exited the building. She left behind an uncomfortable silence as all of the kids sat numb; trying to understand what it was that they were being told. Luke leaned forward in the chair as he clasped his hands together and slowly massaged his fingers in one another while he let his mind just wander.

"Attention!" Ambresio yelled out, breaking the silence as they leapt to their feet and stood rigid. "Don't think that because you're special we're going to go easy on you because we're afraid to hurt our investments. I'll tell you right now that that isn't the case. Hell, I'll even have June work you pieces of shit even harder just because of this little meeting. But you'll be here for a few years yet so I would suggest you get comfortable. Fall out, back to the firing range, you've still got work to do." They all turned towards the inside path and filed out of the building. As Luke was about to reach the end of the path Ambresio called out to him. "Sword, I'd like to have a word with you." He hopped out of line and waited as the rest of his team left the building before he walked back up to the front and stood at attention in front of the Captain. Both of them stared at each other for a while but Luke was forced to suffer through the awkwardness as his mind raced, trying to think of what it was that he had done wrong and how it was so heinous that he'd need to be pulled away from the others. He then began to fear that he wasn't being punished but possibly removed from the program for some reason that he didn't know, forced to become a regular UNSC draftee who would most likely die on a ship or by orbital bombardment without ever seeing the enemy. "Training is going to begin to ramp up soon and we're going to need to begin appointing student leaders within the group to lead them. You've shown the most promise out of all of the recruits and on top of that you have unequaled leadership qualities, you've created an unstoppable team out of Hurricane. We've decided that, until you fuck up and make a fool out of yourself, you'll be team leader for Typhoon Platoon. If you manage to graduate and still remain in this position you'll be given the rank of Lieutenant. We'll be appointing a few other leaders in the next few days so you'll have a little competition for the job, can't let you get complacent because that's how your men get killed." Ambresio quickly paused this onslaught of information to let Luke take it all in which he did. "You and the other team leaders will attend officer classes in addition to your regular studies where we'll outline the duties that you'll have as well as honing your leadership skills on the battlefield. You are to not speak of this to any of your classmates until the appointments have been named. Is this understood?"

"Sir, yes sir."

* * *

"So what did Ambresio want you for after that little presentation?" Katana asked quietly. Her voice was muffled by the bushes and grass that they were sitting in, looking over the valley that had become their home over the months. All of the kids had begun to test the confines of their captivity and had found their own little ways to escape, either by hiding things away that they had collected or escaping from the base as Katana and Luke had done for the past three weeks. They both used it as a chance to wind down from the constant rigors of training and center themselves, the view they had from the small hill that gave them a perfect view of the base and the valley a plus. In the past week they had begun to push the boundaries of their friendship with an uncomfortably kiss that had quickly become habit for them but neither was willing to go beyond a few quick pecks. Sitting with his knees in his chest and his arms wrapped around his legs, Katana leaning up next to him on his shoulder with her legs outstretched, he remained silent as a soft breeze ruffled the leaves around them.

"I'm not supposed to say, it'll be a surprise," Luke said in an almost teasing tone. She pushed against him and they locked eyes as she smiled at him.

"What'd he say?"

"They're putting me in charge of all of us. Said my leadership qualities were 'unequaled' compared to the rest of group." Luke felt uncomfortable talking about himself in that way and his disdain came through enough that Katana picked up on it.

"That's great…but you don't seem too happy about this." Instead of answering, Luke looked away and kept his mouth shut while he twitched his face back and forth as he wrestled in his mind over this new role. "They wouldn't have picked you if weren't confident in your abilities."

"It's not that," he shot back softly. "I don't know if I want to be leading people in battle. I don't want to be responsible for possibly sending people to their deaths either because of a mistake I made or because I have no other choice. It just doesn't seem fair...none of this fair." He felt a hand wrap around his bicep and squeeze softly as her turned on his shoulder to face him. She had a warm look on her face, the blue moonlight adding to the beauty of her eyes.

"No one ever said this was going to be fair. Was it fair that the Covenant attacked us? Was it fair that they captured us? No…but we've got to play with the hand that we've been dealt regardless of what we've got. And sometimes there has to be one person who makes the bigger sacrifice for the greater good. You've led the four of us this far since we've been here and we're as strong as ever." She stopped speaking so that she could reposition herself, getting on her knees and coming in closer to him. "Maybe right now you don't think you've got what it takes to be a leader, and I'm not in your shoes but I'm sure you're scared out of your mind at the prospect of giving orders that might make the difference between a soldier coming home on his feet and in a casket. And you know what? That's perfectly normal. I'd be worried if you didn't have doubts about doing this, if you thought you were totally ready to jump into this." She leaned in front of him and gave him a solid kiss that he didn't return, still lost in his thoughts. "I'm sure that there will be a moment that will give you the answer to whatever question is tormenting you inside of there."

**A/N: This will be the last chapter for a few days. I'll write a few more chapters on my side and then start the next part of the story probably in the middle of the week. Hope you all have enjoyed reading it as much as I've enjoyed writing it!**


	8. War Games

**Sorry for the delay in getting this next bit up. A combination of log-in problems and mid-terms cut my time drastically. On top of that I had writer's block! Things are good though so I'll be updating again (at least until Halo Wars comes out and radically changes the early years of Halo...)**

"War Games"

"You've lost one of your men and your evac has strict orders to only remain on station for a limited amount of time before they bug out. What do you do?" All of the recruits were assembled in the middle of a small clearing that they used as a staging area near their base, the grass was just below knee high and shimmered in waves as the wind pushed the thin green blades up and down. The entire valley seemed to be in full bloom and looked as if it could be the Garden of Eden if they were still on Earth. Sweating in a full ODST get-up, Luke was standing with his team on the far right of the line of recruits as Lieutenant June stood a few inches from his face, their eyes locked with each other. He had been in officer training for almost a year but on this day his mind went blank on the simplest question. "Give me a fucking answer!"

"Sir! I would carry my fallen comrade with me to the extraction point."

"You'll never make it," June shot back.

"I will never leave a fallen brother or sister behind. If that means we will lose our lives in the process then that is a sacrifice I am willing to make." June studied Luke for a few seconds before he seemed content with the response. Stepping away, he stalked further down the line, preparing to quiz another recruit on something else. Once he was far enough away, he felt a nudge on his left elbow and turned his helmeted head enough to see Katana looking in his direction. There was no way to know what she was doing behind the mirrored blue glass and the black metal of the helmet but he guessed she was giving him a big smile. For a few seconds she flashed him a thumbs-up with her right hand that was resting next to the trigger frame of her BR55. By this point in time the class had dwindled down to only 18 people, nearly half of what they had when they began a year and a half earlier. But as the class got smaller and smaller Luke felt like the training was getting better and he was learning more things faster. Amazingly enough, Team Hurricane was still the only team to remain intact throughout the entire ordeal which began to pay dividends as the four young adults had learned the strength and weaknesses of their team and could operate with only the most basic communication. They had also trained in their respective specializations, with Claymore wielding the H-BR55 SAW for heavy support, Dagger and Luke using customized BR55s, and Katana using a long barreled S-BR55 until she could be trained in other sniping platforms. Even though they were specializing in specific weapons, every recruit was required to have basic proficiency in the different weapons in case one of their squad members was killed or incapacitated during a mission.

Still waiting in the warm air, Luke's eyes caught sight of a black shape moving towards them through the cerulean sky and quickly identified it as a D77-TC Pelican drop ship. He guessed that June was just using the questions to kill time until the transport arrived, and when he noticed the recruits flicking their heads in the direction of the sky he stopped questioning them and ordered them towards the tree line so that the craft could come in. Swooping in from the east, the hunchbacked Pelican swung out wide and dropped down to just above the tree line and skimmed over the Evergreens until it was at the clearing before it flared it's four engines and began to slowly descend towards the ground. Luke watched the pilots fidgeting in their seats as they checked the ground around them before the wheels were extended out and they pushed into the sturdy soil. A few seconds after the Pelican settled into the shocks, the roaring engines spun down to a tolerable noise level and the flaming plumes of white hot air were replaced by a thick cone of heat that bubbled from the engine nozzles.

"Everyone onboard!" June yelled. This wasn't the first time that they had ridden on a Pelican before having gone through a fast rope course months back as well as using an older one that had been taken off the frontlines to get them around the valley quickly. But the one they were about to get onto was the newest model and looked as if it hadn't seen any combat yet. All of them quickly piled into the back of the drop ship, squished together on the seats so that six of them were on the cushions while another six were standing in between with their hands gripping a free floating canvas netting over their heads. June remained on the ground and grabbed a headset next to the door and tossed the pair over his head and positioned the microphone in front of his mouth. "It's time you guys start seeing combat on a scale that's a little bit bigger than you used to. Right now there's a full scale combat operation being held to get soldiers who were on medical leave or were getting back from R & R and we're sending you in there to see how you do. Two full teams plus one will be assigned to each side and your goal is to assassinate the entire command unit for your opposition. How you do that is up to you." June took off the headset and stowed it away and then proceeded to jog out of their line of sight. Luke could feel the superstructure of the Pelican begin to rattle before settling into a constant vibration as the engines were spinning up to full power. In a swift motion the drop ship propelled itself into the air and they began to gain altitude to push over the tops of the valley walls. The landscape was almost identical on the other side, a rolling sea of bare mountain tops and pristine forests and fields nestled in between them. No one said anything as they continued to fly, Luke switching off the clock on his HUD to avoid making the inevitably long flight even longer.

Hours later he felt someone nudge his shoulder and call out his name just loud enough so that it broke over the din of the engines. Opening his eyes almost instantly, he saw Katana reaching over to shake him again but stopped when pointed his head right at her. Earlier in the flight they had switched so that he could get a little sleep and rest his legs and feet, something he was grateful she had offered because he never would've asked for it had she not.

"I think we're about to land, I can see some lights and buildings below." Looking outside the passenger compartment he could see that they were in between two separate cloud layers, the bottom layer illuminated an eerie red from the lights below them. He could feel that they were losing altitude and so he stood up and grabbed a hold of the cage overhead and made his way towards the back of the compartment to get a better look at everything. The glowing area looked relatively large but the Pelican quickly flew past it and began to bank back in the direction of the compound below them, angling downwards into the clouds that quickly enveloped them, flashing rhythmically from the strobe lights mounted around the Pelican. A few seconds later they were below the clouds and into a heavy downpour that quickly engulfed them. Sprawling out below them was what Luke quickly identified as a refueling and rearming center that was essentially a large compound of landing pads with all of the necessary equipment to get any of the UNSC's air fleet back into the fight. He'd seen smaller ones during their training flights, usually a cluster of three or four in the middle of a flat mountain top but this one was beyond anything else he'd seen. Luke guessed there were at least forty landing pads all flashing in the hazy and wet night, their landings lights illuminating the rain drops as they fell to the ground. Air Force ground crew were running around small raised walkways that kept them off of the uneven and now muddy terrain and to make transporting supplies easier. As the Pelican touched down on the pad an ODST who had been standing off to the edge of the landing pad walked over towards them, his armor glistening blue and red from the different running lights around him. Stepping out of the passenger compartment, Luke emerged into the rain and took in the incredible amount of activity that was surrounding them. It seemed like at least half of the landing pads were occupied by Pelicans or stealthy C709 Longsword Interceptors sitting like shadows in the night as they waited patiently for their ordinance to be loaded into their bellies.

"Alright, I want Team Hurricane, Team Thunderhead, and Longshot to head over there," the ODST said, pointing to one side of the landing pad, near some crates and fuel lines that were waiting to be used. "And I want Team Blizzard, Team Monsoon, and Bull to go over there," he finished, his hand pointing towards an empty area on the opposite side of the landing pad. Once the nine recruits had separated themselves he made his way over towards Luke and the others. The combination of the heavy rain pounding all of the metal around them and the constant roar of engines from the different craft deadened anything the ODST tried to say over his external speakers so he flashed a "3" with his fingers indicating he wanted them to switch to subchannel three on their current band. "Officially you're now participants in the war games that are currently going on. You'll be considered an independent asset of the 'UNSC' forces so you'll be weapons free to do what you have to do to complete your mission. There's a Pelican waiting for you on landing pad B-8 that will insert you any way you want. Good luck." The Helljumper gave them a nod and trudged back across the landing pad, stepping over a thick tube that was connected to a pump and the Pelican as it refueled. Luke began looking around for an indicator of where they were currently at and saw that their landing pad was designated as "D-3" and the one behind them was "D-2."

"Let's make our way over to the landing pad before we start chit-chatting and planning everything out," he said over the channel that the ODST had them switch over to. A multitude of voices chimed in in agreement and he led the way as they stepped onto the grated walkway. Already he was beginning to think of his competition and trying to think about what they would be doing. Team Monsoon was a rather weak team compared to Hurricane and he didn't worry too much about them but Team Blizzard was a different story. There were originally going to be three officers in the training programming but one of the three was injured and was withdrawn from the project, leaving only Luke another boy named Boomer who was the team leader of Blizzard. The two of them had created a strong rivalry that threatened to become an outright hatred of the other. He didn't doubt for a minute that the powers who be were using this as an opportunity to pit the two potential leaders against each other. Concentrating on the situation he was walking into, Luke was snapped out of his thoughts when a forceful hand pulled his left shoulder back.

"Hey, just wanted to say I'm glad to be on your side." The voice on the other end of the private chat was a relatively familiar one, belonging to a boy named Corona. Luke had a relatively neutral view of him after they operated together a few times during training missions where he proved himself to be a competent if not forgettable soldier.

"Thanks," Luke replied sternly, hoping to avoid having to deal with someone who couldn't handle himself in the middle of a fight. He quickened his pace a little and tucked his chin into his chest to try and limit the amount of water hitting the faceplate that was streaming down the front, obscuring his vision. They continued to find their way through the maze of landing pads and busy workers as the nine soldiers remained silent. Eventually they reached the landing pad, the rain coming down even harder as the Pelican sat motionless and menacingly in the dark. The crew chief was lounging across the right side row of seats but snapped up when he saw the recruits approach them. Still standing beneath the rear end of the Pelican and out of the rain, the chief extended his hand to Luke who returned the handshake with a forceful grip. Dressed in an olive green flight suit, he had some armor on his arms and legs that were an off green color that matched his web gear that was zipped tight across his chest, his helmet the same as the pilots in the front with a blue visor and a multitude of connectors so that he could see any relevant information at any time.

"Welcome aboard. I understand you guys are gonna be doing your own thing?" the chief asked, a slight drawl in his voice.

"Affirmative, we'll be inserting independent of the ground forces that are currently deployed."

"Sounds like we'll be having some fun. What did you have in mind? We've got H.A.L.O gear, fast ropes, old fashioned landing, it's all at your disposal."

"I'd like to actually see the current status of where our troops are at so that I can get an idea of where we'll need to go," Luke responded.

"Copy that, here…" the crew chief walked back into the Pelican and flicked through a few menus on a screen and set up a link with Luke's computer so that he could see real time date of troop positions and orders that were being filtered down the chain of command. The area of operation was a large city that was built on the coastline of some body of water, the harbor shaped roughly like a crescent. A large clif wall jutted up from the relatively flat coastline, with about a fourth of the skyscrapers sitting on top of the flat top before it melded into smaller buildings and eventually into suburban homes. Luke brought up a filter that colored the zones controlled by each side and saw that the UNSC's control zone was the upper portion and they were labeled as the attackers while the OpFor controlled the lower portion of the city and the bay area as a whole which they were to defend. The UNSC was currently holding their position to await reinforcements which would be arriving in the morning, local time.

"How much information do you have on the area?" he asked the crew chief.

"Not a whole lot more than what you've got there, chief. Weather is just as bad if not worse than it is here so the satellites aren't really getting any good shots of the action." Luke looked over the data again and spotted a large building near the edge of the crescent.

"What about this place? Any thermal images on it?" The chief checked what building Luke was referring to and then scampered back to the screen to get the information that Luke wanted. "The images are two hours old but they show just a few nearby units but nothing significant," he said when he came back, then adding, "You're lucky we've got this. An inbound flight gathered some information on it's way over the area."

"I'll take whatever I can get." Luke began to formulate a plan in his mind but was worried about Corona's reaction to it. "This is what I'm thinking," he began after switching over to their private channel. "This building is in a relatively empty part of the city so we should be able to get in relatively undetected. I'm worried about our size though. I think that we could pull off four people moving around, but not nine so I want Corona and Longshot to secure the building we're landing on and use it to watch our backs and give us a fallback position if the shit hits the fan. Is that okay?" The tone of the question didn't leave a lot of room for protest.

"That sounds good," Corona replied without argument, almost sounding happy or relieved.

"Great, now who here is good at sniping?" He knew that Kat would be able to give them some distance on the ground but he wanted to know what they'd be working with up on the building.

"I can," a male said as he stepped forward, his right hand help up a little bit. "My name's Riptide. I've got training in the S-BR55 as well the SRS99C-S2 AM so I can keep an eye on whatever you guys are going." Riptide's voice was soft but it carried the authority and forcefulness of someone who knew what he was doing and what he was talking about. Having an S2 would make their lives a lot easier with it's range providing them a much needed umbrella of sniper cover. The chief was still standing underneath the rear of the Pelican to shield himself from the rain, watching the recruits discuss out in the driving storm. Luke walked over to him and asked him if they had any weapons and ammo lying around for them to use.

"Yup, over there in those crates. Not a whole lot in there but it should last you long enough till you can get something in the combat zone." Luke followed his outstretched arm and saw a small stack of olive green boxes shining from the water and he had his team go through them an begin to empty them of anything and everything they could use. He then set about explaining his plan to the crew chief.

"Let me look at the top of the building to get an idea of what kind of area we'd be landing in." Again he hopped over to his computer and brought up the building on the screen. Luke wasn't sure how tall it actually was but the twisting torso design and oval shape suggested it was relatively tall. It seemed like there was a very strong taper at about two thirds of a way up that brought the sides in very close at the top, possibly making the landing zone too small to land in. "We're going to need to fast rope in. The image doesn't show anything on the top of the building but we can assume that there are going to be conditioning units and antennas that will make it too difficult to bring her in close."

"That's fine, it won't be our first time." Looking over at the crates, Riptide had found an S2 to use and was placing magazines into his vest like the rest. Luke walked over and saw that Katana still had her BR55 variant in her hands and she was grabbing more BR55 magazines. "Why aren't you using that S2?" he asked, pointing to the lone rifle that had been taken out of the largest box of the group.

"If I'm going to be down on the ground I want something that's got a little bit more versatility than what an S2 would give me." He couldn't see her face beneath her helmet but he guessed that she was staring him down and had already made up her mind. "I think I know what I'm doing, Sword."

"If you say so," he replied, not interested in getting into an argument with her. He swiped a few magazines out of the crates and slipped them into his vest, pulling the flaps tight over them before squeezing the Velcro tight. "Let's saddle up and move out!"

Just like before, the flight had begun to border on excruciating and Luke was beginning to get restless as he passed back and forth in the passenger compartment, the Pelican skimming just over dark gray clouds below. Over his head were two thick green fast ropes that were coiled neatly in a free swinging basket that was rocking back and forth gently to the rhythm of turbulence. Some of his team was awake and he watched them slowly scan the area while their squad mates leaned up against them, sleeping soundly.

"You seem a little young to be an ODST," the crew chief said out of nowhere, his voice just barely rising above the engine roar. The accusation almost came out of nowhere and he found his mind going blank as he first tried to figure out when he would've seen his face, but more importantly what he would say. The answer to his first question came quick when Luke remembered that he had taken his helmet off for a minute to get some fresh air and get his short hair lying flatter in his helmet.

"Oh, well, with the war going the way it is they're having to get soldiers who are younger and younger so that's where w-," he stopped himself before he said "we" and went about correcting himself. "I came from. Guess I was good enough to get the job." The crew chief seemed satisfied with the answer and went silent again. Luke moved to the edge of the compartment and grabbed onto one of the railings overhead, making sure to avoid pulling down the AIE-486H machine gun that was being stowed over the door. It was a relatively boring sight with an endless stream of clouds rolling away beneath him like they were stuck on some sort of treadmill. He could feel a chill on the air that he didn't feel when they were at the refueling station and definitely not like the warmth that he was feeling back in their valley which seemed to indicate they were travelling further north to the unnamed city.

"_Get ready, we're dropping into the city now!_" the voice was that of one of the pilots and Luke could sense an underlying feeling of tension that was coming through over the radio. A few seconds passed and the Pelican suddenly nosed forward and dropped into the cloud layer. Luke was having a hard time standing up so he let go of his BR55 which swung across his body and then dropped below him, hanging off of his back by it's strap while his now free arm grabbed at whatever he could find.

"Why are they flying so aggressively?" Luke asked the crew chief who was having just as much difficulty keep his footing.

"There's simulated AA fire. A computer on the ground is projecting the likelihood of being hit and it's talking to the onboard NAV, it'll shut down systems that are 'hit' until it's unsafe to fly in which case it'll mark everyone as dead and he autopilot will take over." The scene outside of the Pelican changed as they dropped beneath the cloud layer and into a thick layer of fog that made it so that he could only just barely make out the most basic silhouettes of buildings rising up below them. Their steep descent continued as the fog got a little bit thinner but still obscured the city to the point that Luke was still unable to pinpoint the build he wanted them to land on or get his bearings for where they were headed. Suddenly the Pelican jerked to starboard and began a slow roll towards the city which was becoming clearer and clearer the lower they got. It was becoming nearly impossible for Luke to continue to stand up and so he motioned for the person sitting in the seat nearest him to move over and he quickly slid into it as they moved, strapping himself in. Across from was the other half of the squad and because of the angle of the descent it seemed as if he was looking down on them. Both Claymore and Dagger were sitting completely still bit the two others with them, Jackal and Sierra of Team Blizzard, were visibly agitated as they continued to shift in their seats and fiddle with anything they could get their hands on. Unable to contain himself he got onto the team's comm channel.

"Relax, the worst thing that'll happen is we'll crash." Both of them looked straight at him and stopped moving but as he was about to savor in his joke for a few seconds something hard hit him in the back of his head. He glanced over to his left and saw Katana bringing her right arm back to her side. Just a split second later an icon appeared on his HUD which indicated to him that Katana had opened up a private channel with him and his comm system was waiting for his approval to open it. The moment he said yes she cut in before he could even get a word in.

"_Don't taunt them like that, Sword. This is some scary shit and there's no need to make it worse._"

"Sorry," he replied, not even attempting to justify himself. He saw that the comm channel closed and for a few seconds he was worried that she was genuinely angry at what he had done but stored it away and focused his mind back on the mission at hand. As he did that his body was suddenly forced into his seat for a few seconds as the Pelican leveled off almost instantly and began to skim just above a gently rolling ocean below them, the salty air filtering into the rear of the Pelican. Behind them Luke could see the other side of the city sprawling out opposite them, across the bay. At sea level the fog as relatively light but above them it grew heavy very quickly, obscuring the tops of the buildings. With the last few free moments in the Pelican, Luke brought up his different radio channels and connected to all of the "UNSC" bands and began to listen in on the radio chatter. Most of it seemed to be coming from the command center who was preparing to mount an offensive and was sending down orders for units to move and relocate to their designated launching points. In another bout of heavy g-forces, the Pelican pushed away from the nearing coast and rose back up into the cloud bank as it gained altitude to land on the target building.

"_Expect_ _possible inbound after we leave. IR is picking up multiple ground units who aren't going to be oblivious to our existence_," the pilot chimed in.

"That's fine, I'm sure we'll be able to handle them if we need to." Below them were a seemingly infinite number of rooftops, the green grass contrasting with the bright white metal and blue tinted glass that rose up into the air. A few seconds later and the Pelican turned over the tallest building they had seen yet. Like the others it had a lawn on the roof, the jade green contrasting the white of the fog and metal around it. Air conditioning units were nestled in the corner to keep as much space open as possible but three antennae spires jutted up from the center, each one a different height, their glistening points shimmering in the dull light that surrounded them. The Pelican maneuvered itself over the largest open space as the crew chief scrambled to get the fast ropes attached to hooks that were locked into a rail frame that would guide them out over the rear of the ship. Dropping in altitude the Luke's squad lined up next to each pile and prepared to slide down. The soldier behind them checked their gear one last time while they did the same to the person in front of them, waiting for the ship to enter the minimum distance for them to fast rope. Without warning a green light next to the door flashed on and Luke and Claymore pushed the ends of the ropes out away from the ledge and then kicked the heavy pile out, the black cord unraveling and whipping as it fell down taught. Luke took a single breath and reached out with his armored gauntlets.


	9. New Elysium

"New Elysium"

Time seemed to have slowed to crawl as Luke glided through the air towards the rope in front of him, both feet floating over the green lawn below him while his gloved hands were reaching for the thick coil of black rope in front of him. All of his senses felt heightened during this time, the metallic taste of the air being filtered into his suit mixing with sharpened vision that was focused on grabbing a hold of the fast rope. In his peripheral he could see Corona going through the air as well, his limbs stretched out like Luke's. With a jerk, his fingers hit the rope and instantly wrapped around it tightly while his legs curled around the bottom, the inside of his boots slipping on either side of the rope to arrest his descent. The ride seemed to be instantaneous as he slid down through the thruster wash and then landed on the soft ground, quickly hurrying out of the landing area to avoid being hit by the person following behind him. Dropping to a knee Luke brought his rifle to bear and was scanning the rooftop for potential contacts but didn't see anyone so he let the weapon droop a little bit while listening to the rest of the squad land behind him, most grunting when they hit the dirt. It didn't take longer than fifteen seconds for them to all get on the ground and the Pelican to begin to take off, the ropes unhinged from the back so that they fell in two neat piles. Just before the drop ship was completely encased in the fog Luke could see the crew chief giving him a wave.

"Is everyone ok?" he asked, making sure no one had suffered any injuries in their descent. Confirmations appeared on his HUD telling him that they were all good to go. "Riptide, what's your visibility up here?"

"Shit. I'll need to get lower if I'm going to be able to give you guys any cover."

"That's fine, you guys will move down with us until you can get some better visibility," Luke responded.

"Will do." Now standing, Luke did a quick scan of the rooftop before he began to make his way towards conditioning units and the roof access that was nestled in amongst the large cubes. He arrived at the door and waited for the rest to jog over to him.

"Hurricane will stack up behind me and we'll go in first. Blizzard, I want you guys to hold back a little bit until we've made our way in. If we run into any trouble, help if you can, but if it's a lost cause then I want you to break off and complete the mission."

"Got it, Sword," Corona responded as his team plus Riptide stood in a group away from the door. Dagger, Claymore, and Kat lined up behind him and put their left hand on each other's shoulder to tell the person in front they were ready. Gripping his BR55 tightly, Luke flung the door open and rolled into the door frame and immediately scanned the area for targets as he hopped down a few steps and let the rest of the team in. Seeing that the immediate area was clear, he lowered his weapon and peered over the railing to get a look at the stairwell. He was hit with a small bout of vertigo as the stairwell went all the way to the bottom of the building. Brightly lit and covered in plain white paint, he took a few breaths before beginning the dreaded walk down.

* * *

Dropping to the flat ground off of the last step, Luke didn't dare look back up the staircase but instead focused on the door in front of them. He was pleased with the speed that they got down the building and the four of them still seemed ready to go and fight. About halfway down they had found a good area for Riptide to set up his S2. Walking in it was easy to see that the building was far from finished with the floors missing carpeting and the ceilings still exposed with wires and tubes completely exposed. Riptide marched across the concrete floor and picked out a window that gave him a good view of the city and set his rifle up on it's bipod before walking over to the glass. Pulling out a small knife from his side bag he drug it across the bottom of the window and then tapped it lightly so that some parts fractured along the line. Grabbing what he could, he pulled the rest of the square off and set it down, sliding his barrel up to the edge and then propping himself up so that he was looking down on the streets below. While Riptide was doing this, Luke and Corona found a channel that wasn't being used and encrypted it so that the squad could talk between themselves without having to worry about being listened in on. It almost seemed like their departure was hours before as Luke led his squad into the rich lobby of the building. For a few seconds he was taken aback by it's luxury. The lobby was easily four stories hall with two rows of mahogany pillars leading away from the doors towards the elevator columns in the back of the room. Black marble laced with white veins of some other mineral had been polished to an almost mirror finish and covered the entire floor and almost all of the walls. Remaining crouched in the door frame with the barrel of his rifle just barely peeking out; he surveyed the safest route across the open space. Eyeing a pair of desks by the front of the lobby he figured they would be able to travel along the columns and get to the tables without being seen. They quickly crouched low to the ground and began to move quickly through the open, their boots making an out of place clacking on the floor that echoed through the lobby before dying out. Luke arrived at the window and did a quick visual scan of the streets that they'd be walking out into. A haze still hovered over everything which only added to the washed out look of the bleached cement buildings and their light colored windows. There were a few luxury cars parked on the side of the roads but they were definitely older models and were beginning to show their age as the paint was showing signs of fading and the wear and tear of the environment took it's toll. Frustrated with the visibility, Luke activated his enhanced HUD which used his motion tracker radar to highlight enemies as well as any larger objects near him, including buildings. It took a few seconds for his computer to process the data but then glowing lines popped up on his HUD outlining the cars and the edges of the buildings near them.

"_This place is so…weird. It's like it was being constructed just as the war started and no one moved in,_" Dagger commented over their comm channel. Luke was getting the same vibe and was glad to hear that someone else shared his opinion but kept his mouth shut.

"Riptide, do you have any ideas on where we need to head out to?" Luke asked, still standing in front of the partial glass wall while the rest of the team remained behind him.

"Negative on an exact location, sir."

"_Sword, this is Corona. I've been taking a look at the radio traffic and I've noticed that we're picking up the OpFor channel. We can't hack into it without them knowing about it but I don't think we'd need to in order to find out where they're at."_ Luke listened intently as Corona began to lay out his plan. _"I think that if we can just hack into some of these comm towers on the buildings we could triangulate the source. We may even be able to use the two radios on top of here if you can find a third."_ He turned to the other three and stared at their blue visors. Despite being unable to see their faces Luke felt as if he was able to see their expressions and understand what each of the thought.

"Get to work on that. My squad will start moving further into the city and once you've got the antennas set up we'll take care of one on our end."

"_Sounds good. Corona out." _Luke opened up his map and began to rotate the 3D view so that it was centered behind him. Following the street they were on would lead them towards the harbor where there was a main thoroughfare that followed the curve of the seawall. Judging by the size of the buildings and the other information he had the area was relatively exposed and would be a death sentence if they dried to move along the shoreline. Skipping back a block he found a series of streets that mirrored the seawall road but provided them the cover of some of the larger buildings that made up the heart of the city. Scrolling back to the intersection of the street the they were currently on and the one he needed to get to he dropped a waypoint marker on it which appeared on his HUD.

"That's our first target. If we get split up for some reason I want to regroup on this tower but make sure they know what's coming back with us, no point in retreating if you don't." Standing up but remaining on edge he began to walk down the street with his squad at his back.

* * *

Walking down the street, Luke was continually haunted by the deserted nature of the city and the almost oppressive nature of it's silence. Moving past the lobbies of different buildings he could see that they were in various stages of completion with some being fully furnished while others were full of construction equipment. Occasionally they would pass a building that seemed to have been involved in a firefight that resulted in bullet holes riddling the white metal and concrete, the blue glass broken and shattered. The walk to the first waypoint was an easy one and they made good time. By now the haze had almost completely burned off as the system's star was rising up into the crystal clear sky but despite this the air remained chilly and was still trying to cut through the layers of clothes that they were wearing. Stopping near the bottom of a staircase that led up to another tower, empty planters filled with stagnant water on top of the walls that cut the staircase into three sections, Luke pulled brought up his map and began to plan out a path to the next waypoint.

"Man…what I wouldn't have given to live here. It's gorgeous," Claymore commented distantly as he took a few steps away from the rest of Team Hurricane, his body still pressed up against cover in case they came under attack. Luke, still focused on the map, looked away and was almost startled by the beauty of the rest of the city. In front of them was an enormous cliff that was topped by the rest of the city. Built in the same architectural style as the rest of the city, the buildings shone brightly and contrasted against the blue background as the star that was sitting behind the team to the north illuminated them with it's light. A number of waterfalls cascaded off the side of the cliff, a fine mist blowing off the streams of water which produced a number of rainbows. On either side of the upper tier of the city were small hills that were topped with a thick emerald forest of Evergreen trees that swayed ever so gently in the ocean breeze. Occasionally a flock of white birds, possibly Seagulls would catch the light and Luke's eyes as they raced by. "I think I'm going to call it…New Elysium," he said after a moment of silence.

"Why _New _Elysium?" Dagger asked. Claymore turned around when he heard this and began to come back towards the group slowly.

"Elysium was the paradise of the ancient Greeks and this place looks to be about as perfect as you can get. Besides, there was already an Elysium City in the Eridanus System but it got destroyed during the Battle of Eridanus II so that's why this place should be called New Elysium."

"Fair enough," Dagger replied after a waiting a few moments.

"Let's cut the chit chat, we've got a mission to complete," Luke interjected in case they began to wander and get complacent. Before he was about to go back to studying the map one last time something caught his eye up by the cliff. Zooming in on the black object he quickly recognized it as an AV-14 VTOL "Hornet," a small single seat attack craft with a distinct humpback shape where the large cockpit rested while two wings extended outwards and were tipped with two large turbo-fans. While watching it with his built in binoculars, a second Hornet came into vision followed by a third. Pulling back a little, Luke saw that the sky was quickly filling with the crafts as the buzzed about over the UNSC base. "That's a lot of ships flying around up there."

"Pardon?" Kat said as she stepped up next to him.

"Up over the cliff, I'm seeing a lot of Hornets flying around up there." He held out his left arm and pointed towards the ships with his index finger.

"Hmm, looks like they're up to something," she replied after a few moments of silence.

"Seems like it. I'll keep my ear to the ground and see if there's anything popping up over the different channels but I haven't heard anything yet. Besides, it's not our problem yet." At the edge of his visor he could see Kat nodding her head ever so slightly in the morning light. "Alright guys, let's get moving. We've got a long day ahead of us."

* * *

"Freighter _Glycerin _this is UNSC Satellite Command, pleasechange course to bearing 221 and decrease speed fifteen percent." Swinging back and forth ever so slightly in his plush black chair, Ensign Jon Martinelli watched as the civilian ship altered it's course and began to make it's way out of his slice of space. A young man, Martinelli was rather attractive with jet black hair and a slight olive tint to his skin, his face sitting on the softer side but avoiding being pudgy or baby-like. A year and a half ago he decided to enlist at seventeen before graduating from high school, avoiding the almost mandatory draft for all but the brightest and most accomplished students who were almost all sent to the Marines. He applied for the Navy and was soon dreaming of serving on a combat ship but the dream didn't last long as he crippled his right leg permanently during Basic Training and quickly found himself in an awkward position. Unable to serve on a ship or as infantry, the Navy kept him on to fill critical support roles that would normally have been filled by an able-bodied soldier. This sent him to the small planet Maya, a semi-important mining planet that was supplying a small amount of the material used for the war effort. Without anything to do, he found himself staring at the stars through the window of the modified MAC platform he was on. Unwilling to devote the resources needed to create a full Super MAC station, the UNSC created a hybrid platform that housed the smaller MAC weapons system in addition to the Satellite Command operation which kept the space clear and was his home for the foreseeable future. Tapping the front of his pen on the miniscule amount of desk space he had, Jon slowly turned to his right and looked at the person next to him. A cute, if not average brunette, she had transferred in just a few days earlier and he quickly started to make moves on her that were seeming to pay off. He was about to speak when she flashed a bright smile and held her finger up in a "give me a second" gesture before motioning to her headset which was glowing blue, signaling it was active. Giving a sigh that was slathered in sarcasm, he leaned back a little in his chair and watched her speak to a ship captain who didn't seem to understand what she was ordering him to do. Returning to tapping his pen, he tried to figure out what it was he was going to try and get from her. The last time he conversed he tried to get her to go to dinner with him during their next leave on the surface but she seemed a little unsure and he didn't press the issue. He decided he'd bring the subject up again and see where it went. Interrupting his thought process was a single chirp from a hidden speaker near his computer which indicated a ship jumping into his zone of control. Conditioned to the sound, he ignored it and decided to wait for the ship to hail him for directions in which case he might answer them the first time but he wasn't sure. A few seconds later a second chirp rang out indicating another jump into the system which piqued his interests a little. Spinning back into his desk, Martinelli reached for a data pad and scrolled through the list of scheduled jumps and saw that there was only expected and it was at least an hour out with three more hours separating the next jump. Before he was able to check his other charts the computer began to fire off a series of three quick beeps before pausing for a few seconds and then beeping again. This sound was something that made him kick into overdrive as it indicated that the IFF and RADAR were both coming up with negative identification which was the worst thing that could happen. For a few seconds he considered sounding the general alarm but held his finger from tapping the flashing red button on the corner of his right side monitor until he could get a visual confirmation. Taking control of one of the cameras he copied the coordinates over and waited for the view to slowly center itself. It took almost twenty seconds before it was in the proper location but it didn't take more than a glance for Martinelli to recognize what it was that had just jumped into the system. Glowing a bright purple from the star were two CCS-Class Battlecruisers sitting just outside of the MAC cannon's range but just inside their improved sensors, possibly an error on the Shipmaster's part but in the grand scheme of things it would make no difference. Without hesitation, Martinelli hit the general alarm which instantly set off a blaring strong of klaxons as the room took on a red hue from the spinning lights arrayed over doors and the windows. Jon quickly set about sending out orders to their minimal defenses, the thoughts of a nice dinner with the new girl quickly fading into the darkness.

* * *

"Corona…I've got a negative visual on the building you're describing. Nothing in the area matches." Luke was on edge as he stood in the center of the road with his head craned up towards the blue sky overhead as he scanned the skyline for the building that Corona was trying to get him to enter. "Where the fuck are you…" he muttered under his breath. Every moment he remained in the open was another moment that a sniper or a patrol might notice him and throw a wrench in their whole mission.

"_Sword, this is Longshot_," the new voice cut into the quiet comm channel. "_I've got a few smoke rounds with me that I swiped just in case we needed to mark targets for…whatever, it's not like we're calling in air support or anything. But if I pop a round off at the building we can mark it for you_." Luke instantly recognized this plan as ridiculously dangerous and the risks certainly were approaching the same level as the benefits. Making sure he wasn't broadcasting, he spoke to the rest of his team.

"What do you think? It's not like we're finding the building that Corona is talking about and there aren't any other broadcasting dishes in the area."

"It's your decision, Boss," Dagger replied from Luke's left as he sat crouched behind an abandoned car. "But if you want my opinion on the matter, hopefully we'll be long gone before anyone makes their way over here to check out some smoke so I don't really think it'll do too much to endanger the mission." Luke nodded in agreement and opened the channel back up.

"Take the shot and try and put it somewhere where we'll be able to see it from street level, preferably on the top of the building."

"_Roger that, sir,_" Longshot replied. A few moments passed before he came back onto the channel. "Firing in three…two…" he didn't finish the sentence as the sound of the rifle firing activated the channel and came through over their speakers. Luke and the others looked into the sky as they waited for smoke to come wafting into view but he began to grow more frustrated when he saw nothing.

"Longshot, can you confirm the smoke is blowing?"

"_Roger that, it's just beginning to blow around now_." Still unable to see it, he was about to give up when Kat called out.

"Hey! I see it about a block over diagonally from us, I just saw a few wisps of green smoke blow through some openings."

"Let's move out and get this triangulation going." Motioning towards the building, his squad fell in around him as Luke made his way over to the sidewalk on the right side of the road, away from the water. It looked like Kat was making her way towards him but Corona sent him a private communication chat that he accepted.

"_Sword, a new channel has just popped up on the network that's sending out some odd signals. It's under the K-band and the signals are absolutely erratic, also really weak which seems to suggest they're not related to anything happening around here_."

"Can you patch it over to me?"

"_Sure, give me a few seconds_." Sure enough, a link appeared on his HUD and Luke opened up the new channel as he continued walking towards the target building. At first all he heard was static in his ears but what he thought were voices began to peak through the pops and sizzles. He had the computer auto filter the channel to try and get more clarity and it did it's best to moderate success. He was correct in his assumption that he was hearing voices but they weren't speaking a language he'd ever heard. Throaty, almost bark-like sounds danced back and forth, a sound of tension and anxiety as the sounds came fast and with what seemed like little enunciation.

"That's weird sounding. You don't think that's a language is it?"

"_Hard to tell. I'm sure a lot of local populations have their own dialects but that doesn't even sound Human_," Corona replied.

"Agreed. Just monitor that channel a little bit and if anything changes I'd forward that to the main UNSC base up on the hillside, they'll probably want to know what's going on."

"_Roger that sir, good luck in getting the dish up and running_."


	10. The Maya Counter Offensive

"The Maya Counter Offensive"

Luke had underestimated how cold the air at the top of the building was as he watched Dagger attempting to patch their portable radio into the satellite dish. Dagger's fingers had gone from a pink color when he took his gloves off to a bright red before settling into a ghostly white as the blood refused to travel to his exposed fingers. Despite Luke urging him to let someone else take over, Dagger rebuffed him and insisted that he would rather do it himself since he knew why he'd done different things along the way. At the moment, a spare fiber optic cable was being jerry rigged into the main line leading away from the dish but there was something wrong with the connection and they weren't talking to each other. Off to their side on the gravel rooftop was Claymore who was standing next to a generator, ready to send juice back to the dish when Dagger gave the go ahead. After the fifteenth attempt they'd managed to come up with an unspoken motion to flip the switch. Stepping away, Claymore brought the generator back online and waited as Dagger stood next to the radio, a fiber optic cable hooked into his armor which was displaying all of the information on his HUD. Dropping his head in disappointment, he squatted down next to the thick bundle of black cable and started to shift things around. The entire squad had grown silent so as to prevent any tension from erupting in an argument which was something they definitely didn't need right now. Luke stepped away from Dagger as he focused on getting it right this time around and began to walk over to Katana who was vigorously defending an unused A/C unit which was doubling as a nice place to sit.

"Is this seat taken?" he asked as he walked up next to her. She looked over at him and scooted to the edge before patting the spot next to her. Accepting the gesture, he sat down on the metal and let his feet slide out from in front of him, pushing the white gravel out of the way. Katana reached up to her helmet and popped the seals on it so that she could take it off, setting it down over the fan that was sitting still beneath a wire mesh. Luke followed suit, grateful to let the fresh, if bitterly cold, air blow across his face.

"This is taking a while," she said, breaking the silence.

"Yeah, but it'll still be faster than rushing into their base to try and find whoever's in charge." As he was sitting there, an odd feeling flooded his mind but it wasn't unfamiliar. Like some invisible hand tugging at him, he felt a warm feeling in his head that was in the direction of Katana. It was the same feeling he had whenever he was in combat and seemed to "sense" danger around him but no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't seem to control it but just knew that there was something wrong. He'd never mentioned it to the others but they all seemed to react like he did as he could see them tense up and look around whenever he felt it, most likely the gift that they all possessed that lead them to being picked up by the UNSC for this project. After a few seconds, the feeling seemed to subside and he looked over at Katana who had her head hanging low. "Something wrong?" She wiggled her lips a little bit but didn't say anything. Glancing back at Dagger and Claymore he saw that they were absorbed in their work and weren't looking over. Luke reached up to Katana's brown hair that had been cut to just above her shoulder and was pulled back behind her head with a single clip. Gently caressing her head, he brought it down to her shoulder and pulled her into his chest.

"It seems like we met at the wrong time and under the wrong circumstances," she said as she rested her head on an unarmored part of his chest, just below his shoulder. He knew what she meant but still asked anyways. "We never would've met had it not been for this project and it's in the middle of a war of survival. Whatever it is that's between us has to be pushed aside and it's not fair." Her voice wasn't whining or even dejected but rather a cool assessment of the situation they found themselves in. Luke nodded slowly in agreement so that she knew he understood what she was trying to convey. He imagined it was hard for her to come out with something like this and it showed her true character. Kissing her forehead softly he released the slight pressure on her and she withdrew from him but still had a solemn look on her face.

"If…when this is over. I promise you that we'll try and make us work." Their eyes locked together and a smirk came across his face as he stood up, reaching for his helmet. Towering over her, he kissed her on the lips and masked his face behind the blue visor. "Just stay by my side," he finished, his voice metallic and crackling through the speakers. As he walked away, the smirk faded and a feeling of depression came over him that he tried to manage but was unable to dismiss. Giving himself a few seconds, it passed and he recomposed himself as he walked up to Dagger and patted him on the back. "Take your time and get this right," Luke said in a reassuring tone.

"Yes sir. It's not that I'm having a hard time figuring anything out, just a matter of finding the right cable to splice into that'll let the two of these things communicate with each other and I haven't found it yet." Stepping off of his knee, Dagger motioned to Claymore to power up the dish yet again. A few seconds passed and Dagger looked at Luke. "Found it."

Corona watched the holographic display as the third dish connected to the network he had already established. A 3D render of the city appeared above the small projector and keyboard that Corona was hunched over. Tapping a few keys, a triangle appeared between the three targets and he let the software begin to search out the source of the OpFor's signal. With so many competing bands and a relatively small amount of computing power he watched as the progress bar moved across the display painfully slow.

"Corona, that K-band you wanted me to watch is starting to get clearer and it seems like there's more traffic on it." Corona looked away from the map and towards Helios, one of his squad members.

"What's going on? Can you make out anything?"

"Negative on that, still jibberish but I don't think this is Human at all, not by a long shot." Helios remained still as he remained focused on Corona.

"Ok…forward that to command." He nodded at Corona's order and began to get the information together to send to the command base on the top of the hill. At the moment, the K-band wasn't his concern until he was ordered otherwise. Returning to focus on the progress bar, he watched it skip ahead a few chunks and finish up. The view centered on the far side of the bay near a square that was surrounded by a few buildings that were much larger than the surrounding structures. A pulsing red dot centered on the open space and he quickly got the coordinates and forwarded them to Luke.

* * *

"Sir, I'm getting a message from a new unit on the far side of the city." Two rows of computers sat back to back in a small tent, technicians manning each one as they monitored communications and relayed orders to the units. Sitting in the middle of the group was a young Corporal who had received a message from a unit that he didn't know existed in an area they shouldn't be in. In charge of the technicians was a middle-aged Commander who was communicating directly with the command element for the UNSC forces. Walking over to the station, the Commander leaned over the Corporal's chair and stared at the monitor.

"What is it?"

"We received a message that asked us to monitor the K-band," he replied quickly.

"The K-band? That's typically a channel used by the Covenant. Why would they want us to monitor that?" the Commander wondered out loud.

"It's possible they're modifying the scenario to see how we react."

"Maybe, play it over the speakers and let's see what's up." Two seconds passed before the speakers were filled with the same deep guttural language from before. All of these soldiers had field experience and knew what they were listening to. "Jesus…those are Elites. Cancel the scenario and prepare for combat! Alert planetary command if they haven't already heard. The information may be still coming down the pipes.

* * *

Luke stopped as a message icon appeared on his HUD, glowing red which was something that he'd never seen before. What it contained chilled his blood instantly.

"What is it?" Dagger asked as they waited in the dimly lit staircase.

"Covenant forces have entered the system and are attacking a nearby planet, Maya. All forces are being mobilized here to assist in defending the planet. We're supposed to report to the nearest command post for further orders." No one said anything as they let what he said sink in a little bit. It'd been three years since they'd all been abducted and they were finally preparing to go to war to do what they'd been trained to do. It was an odd feeling for Luke. He'd expected to either be full of adrenaline or be scared but it seemed as if he had no emotions whatsoever. He remained still as he considered the next course of action and knew that, ironically, he had a little bit of time to make it as they were dependant on someone else to get them to their new objective. "Let's get down to street level and try and meet up with Corona and his team. Hopefully command will send a message to us and give us some orders."

The trip down the stairwell was fast with everyone moving with an increased sense of urgency to get into the fight. There was very little talk between them, mostly limited to quick comments about their immediate surrounding but not much else. Luke had slung his rifle onto his back to move faster and was skipping stairs as his feet propelled him forward. Chatter on the radios had exploded to the point that he had to turn them down so that he could think without the hundreds of voices constantly talking and receiving orders. He decided that if there was something important, they'd be given the orders directly. Emerging onto the street, he looked over towards the cliffs and saw that it was a complete turnaround in activity as Pelicans swarmed in the sky while more were coming in from all directions. There was a dull din that permeated the air as all of the engines of the drop ships roared around them. Luke tried to bring up their channel with Corona but the bandwidth had been reallocated to the higher priority channels and their SQUADCOM wasn't strong enough to transmit to through all of the buildings to Team Thunderhead. Luke cursed under his breath but didn't have time to stop and think of a new plan when a communications request appeared on his HUD from Captain Ambresio. Immediately accepting, the Captain wasted no time in explaining the situation.

"_Sword, I'm sure you've already heard that Covenant forces have entered the system and have attacked Maya, all UNSC forces currently on the planet are being mobilized to defend the colony. I've dispatched a Pelican to pick you and your team up for immediate evac out of the area_."

"Sir, I have two questions. First, what about the other teams? Thunderhead, Monsoon, Blizzard? All of them are currently still operating within the battlefield. And why are we evacuating and not fighting?"

"_Son, I gave you your orders and I expect you to follow them. The other teams will be dealt with when possible but you are my priority._" Ambresio's response stung and made Luke pause for a second but he didn't press the issue any further and accepted it.

"Yes sir." Luke grit his teeth while he took a deep breath and held it in. He was sure the rest of the team could sense his tension but didn't care, they wouldn't stop listening to him just because he was frustrated with an order from above. Refocusing on the mission, he wasn't sure where there Pelican was coming from or where it was landing but Ambresio had contacted him which meant he probably had a fix on their location. Sure enough, a Pelican began hailing him.

"_This is Lima Eight-Three-Six to Sword. I'm inbound to your current location, ETA one minute_."

"Copy that Lima Eight Thirty-Six, we're on station and awaiting pick up." Looking up into the sky, Luke spotted a Pelican dropping down lower to the skyline while it headed towards them. He grabbed a smoke grenade from his belt and rolled it out into the intersection to the south of them and walked back from the area. The green smoke billowed from the small metallic canister and up into the air so that the Pelican wouldn't have any trouble finding them.

"I can't believe they're just going to leave the others behind like this. It's not right," Katana said through her speakers.

"They never said that they were leaving the behind, just that they wanted us out of here first. I can't believe that they'll want to just throw away so many of our lives in the blink of an eye." Luke paused for a few seconds before he finished his reply, almost as if he was reassuring himself. "We're too valuable." Remaining relatively still, the Pelican came in close to them before it ducked down a side street and out of view. The sound of it's engines echoed throughout the city blocks while it moved between the buildings and into the intersection they were at. As the Pelican descended closer and closer to the ground, the column of green smoke began to blow horizontally before being pushed right into the asphalt after leaving the opening in the canister. Dust and debris that had accumulated on the unkempt roads skipped over the black surface towards Team Hurricane as they remained firm against the jet wash. Once the three landing arms touched down, Luke motioned for them to get on board with a quick flick of his wrist in the direction of the rear of the drop ship. Jogging over, he climbed in the back which was completely empty and headed towards the front while the other three members of his team sat down in their seats and pulled the waist restraints together and strapped themselves in. Opening up the door to the cockpit, Luke ducked down and stepped into the open space next to the co-pilot, behind the pilot.

"I'm Chief Warrant Officer Preston, call sign 'Bugle.' I'm guessing yours is Sword…?" Preston asked while he turned around in his seat to look at Luke, his voice trailing off as he was wondering what Luke's name and rank were.

"That's affirmative, I'm Sword. Where are we headed?" he replied, closing the subject before it opened up any more.

"Captain Ambresio is waiting at one of the rally points which are being used to transport troops to ships in orbit. I'm guessing you'll be getting new orders when we arrive," he replied in the same matter-of-fact tone he'd been sporting since they first started communicating.

"ETA?"

"About an hour, give or take if the air space is crowded which it probably will be. I'd suggest you try and get some shut eye on the way over there."

Despite his attempts to take Bugle's advice, Luke was unable to fall asleep which was made even more frustrating due to the fact that both Claymore and Dagger were snoring loudly and Katana had dosed off onto his right shoulder, her helmet held tight in her lap. Sitting with his hands between his legs and his back slumped a little, Luke was only left with his thoughts as the Pelican cut through the crystal clear air on it's way to the rally point. They were traveling through the mountains that were had just received what looked like their first winter dusting of snow while the lakes were just beginning to freeze solid, reflecting the sunlight back up in a brilliant and blinding white flash. He turned his hands over and absent-mindedly examined his gloves which had begun to fray and tear as they became caked in dirt and other junk that he had touched during his missions. They served as a sort of reminder and log of his experiences as a soldier up until this very moment and he couldn't help but rub his right thumb in his left palm for some reason.

"Are you hurt?" He froze when Katana spoke to him and he looked over to see her staring at his hands as he was rubbing them together.

"Oh…no. I was just…I'm fine," he stammered, embarrassed to tell her what he was really thinking. With his helmet on she wasn't able to see him sweating at the sudden question.

"Ok then, just looked like you were massaging some kind of injury, that's all."

"Yeah, I guess it does. I'm fine though, and even if I was hurt it's my off-hand so it's all good." She smiled weakly and nodded after a second, accepting his pledges. Glancing out the back of the Pelican, Luke noticed that another drop ship had slotted in behind them while vehicles and troops moved about below. The Pelican quickly slowed it's speed and began to lose it's altitude, obviously preparing to land. Katana pushed away from him and put her helmet on and began to pressurize it while Luke reached out with his foot and bumped Claymore and Dagger in the shins to get them up. Almost in unison they both snorted awake and looked around for a second before they had already reestablished their bearings and were focused.

"Are we about to land?" Dagger asked, a slight hint of drowsiness still lining his voice.

"Yeah, I think so. Look sharp because the Captain is going to be here."

"Got it Boss," Claymore added in. Dropping even lower, the Pelican finally came to a stop on the frozen ground in a large clearing in the forest. Peering out the back, Luke saw that the normally lush green forest had a pale hue to it due to the layer of frost that was veering everything sapping the plants of their color. He got up first and led the way out the back of the Pelican while the others followed behind him out into the bitterly cold air. Stopping a few feet away from the back of the Pelican and looking around for some sort of directions, Luke heard Captain Ambresio call out to him.

"Sword! Over here!" Turning to his right, Luke jogged to the Captain who was wearing a long black trench coat, double-breasted with his epaulets lined with four gold bars representing his rank. A single silver eagle adorned his white cover that was pulled tight over his head. Standing next to Ambresio was a young women that Luke recognized almost instantly as Doctor Trisha Allara, who'd spoken to them years earlier. She was dressed in a warm looking black pea coat that was cinched at her waist with a fashionable leather belt, a scarf wrapped snugly around her neck. Both of them looked relatively miserable as their faces had lost almost all color except for their noses and ears which had turned bright red. "Glad to see you made it here in one piece," Ambresio said, his dried and cracked lips letting out a constant stream of white fog.

"Yes sir, it was a smooth ride."

"Good because it looks like we're going to have to use him to get to our destination considering our ride still hasn't arrived." Ambresio had a frustrated look on his face as he gave the landing grounds one last look for something but when he didn't see it he began to walk towards Lima-836. "We'll be travelling to the Frigate _UNSC Kamiak_ which has been assigned to Project TEMPEST indefinitely. That's all you need to know for the moment." Luke followed after Ambresio, annoyed with the way the Captain treated him and his team but regardless of his feelings this was no time for him to begin lodging protests. Ambresio stepped into the rear of the Pelican and immediately headed for the cockpit while Hurricane and Dr. Allara sat down in the seats, the ones they were just sitting in still warm from the earlier flight. The doctor sat down gracefully and adjusted her clothes before looking at the four soldiers one at a time. From behind his mask, Luke was able to follow her gaze as she studied each one of them. He could see behind her brown eyes that her brain was clicking but there was no way for him to know what it was that she was thinking.

"_Alright, welcome aboard Lima Eight-Three-Six lady and gentlemen,_" Bugle said over the internal speakers, referring to Dr. Allara in his welcome speech, unaware that one of the ODSTs was also a female. While speaking, the rear of the Pelican began to close tight as two halves of a door met in the center and locked together, a high pitched whistle signaling that the rear was pressurizing. "_This is a non-smoking, non-stop flight to the Kamiak. Due to budget cuts we won't be serving any meals_." Luke chuckled silently at the joke which was made even funnier by the sudden uneasiness that was coming across him. This would be the second time Luke flew in space but during his first trip it was under the influence of whatever drug they'd used to transport him from his home. This time around he wouldn't have that luxury. Thankfully he could sense the tensions rise inside the ship as the others realized where it was they were heading. The ascent was much faster than Luke had imagined when he was forced into his seat by the g-forces of the Pelican accelerating to escape velocity. Engine noise filled the rear of the ship as they hit max power and then some, the superstructure rattling from the immense stresses put on the metal. Glancing up to the front, Luke could see Ambresio's feet peeking out from the open door where he was seated in the jumpseat next to the co-pilot. Through the window he was able to see the sky darkening and the last few wisps of clouds disappear as Bugle pushed his ship higher and higher into the atmosphere until the dark blue seamlessly transformed into an inky black sky that was filled with a billion blinking points of light. The g-forces quickly disappeared as the last tendrils of gravity let go of the ship which allowed Luke to float up from his seat for a second, pressing against the restraints that he loosened up and then finally unhooked. Grabbing hold of the cargo netting above him, he stopped his upward movement and then gently pushed himself in the direction of the cockpit. When he reached the door he stopped himself with all of his limbs and poked his head in just to make sure he wouldn't be chastised and ordered out. The view was absolutely stunning for a multitude of reasons. Never before had he seen so many stars nor had he seen them shine so bright, each one of them sending a steady stream of bright white and yellow light into the galaxy. Off to the port side was one of the planet's satellite, a much smaller planetary body that seemed to be covered in ice and rock which would've accounted for it's bright color. But mixed in with the natural beauty was the size of the Human fleet preparing to counterattack Maya. All around them were transports ferrying troops and equipment to the ships waiting around the Super MAC platforms that defended the planet. Because of the proximity of the planet and the relatively unsophisticated nature of the Shaw-Fukijawa FTL drive, once a group of ships were ready to join the fray they brought their engines to full power, the enormous exhaust tubes glowing bright orange as they propelled the crafts to war. Doing a quick head count, Luke figured the fleet numbered somewhere between sixty and eighty ships. For a few seconds he got his hopes up as the Pelican seemed to be heading towards a rather large ship sitting still in the space, a ship that Luke recognized immediately as the gargantuan Marathon-class cruiser but those hopes quickly disappeared when the Pelican made a turn to starboard and headed out into what seemed like an empty area.

"C'mon son, we need to talk," Ambresio said, breaking the silence as Luke remained transfixed with the sight around him. Pushing backwards, he floated towards the rear of the ship before he grabbed the cargo netting again and stopped himself next to Katana and Dagger. The Captain followed behind him, navigating the weightless environment with amazing skill that gave away his time in the service back before ONI had yet to take Covenant technology and repurpose it for Humans. Closing the door, he took a moment before speaking.

"This isn't your fight...our fight. Not yet at least." Ambresio stared directly at Luke as if he was speaking directly to him, something he may very well have been doing. "Those above who are involved in the project ordered me to evacuate the most promising team and bring them to a medical facility for the next, and last, step in the training process. I didn't like the call but it also wasn't a hard decision."

"Why are you telling us this?" Dagger asked, genuinely interested in why Ambresio was saying this.

"There have been some complications with the project. We've been given word of the declassification of a Project SPARTAN which has taken a large amount of the funding from TEMPEST. We're only able to afford the augmentations for a single team, hence why I had to choose the best team for the job. It was the most we could without getting the entire thing axed." The Captain seemed visibly frustrated at this turn of events even if his voice didn't give his emotions away. "The _Kamiak_ will serve as your launching platform for missions from here on out and considering Warrant Officer Preston is coming aboard he'll be stuck with us too. That's about all I've got for you at the moment. Sometime during the jump, Dr. Allara will give you a full rundown of the procedures and other aspects of the training."

* * *

The ODST helmet sunk into the bed with a dull thud after Luke tossed it to his side. One by one he undid the clips holding his chest plate on, snapping the two on either side of his stomach and pulling the metal armor up and over his head. It felt good to be finally out of the armor as he twisted his body around in the thin under suit and padding that was zipped tight to his chest. Luke felt oddly uncomfortable in his own room after having lived with a group of people for over three years; he wasn't used to the silence and the space that he had at his disposal. The _Kamiak _was operating with a skeleton crew and it wasn't expected to get much larger once they docked after the jump. While technically a Frigate (Hull Number FFG-298), the _Kamiak_ had been retrofitted to serve as a stealth ship and had been covered in radar absorbing paint that made it almost completely invisible to sensors and the naked eye. In addition, the ship was hardened against electronic leakage which would give away it's position as well as having it's engines updated so that they could "run silent" like Submarines. All of this came at a cost, however, as the ship's armaments were largely non-existent with the MAC gun removed and the 50mm point-defense guns being reduced to four total and the Archer Missile Pods dropping from thirty to twenty. In the scheme of things, the _Kamiak's_ survivability probably received a substantial boost because it's firepower, while strong against Human ships was no match for even the smallest Covenant capital ships. The _Kamiak_ encompassed the entire dilemma of Humanity, either stand your ground and lose or run to fight another day.

"Can I come in?" Katana was leaning around the corner of the bulkhead leading into Luke's room, all of her armor off but still dressed in her BDUs. Without the metal plating Luke was able to see her feminine figure more closely which stirred a yearning inside of him that he quickly shut down.

"Yeah, sure," he replied quietly and walked past her as she came in to close the door. "What's up?"

"Nothing, I just don't want to be alone."

"I've been having the same feeling. It's funny I guess…I'm sure the entire UNSC would give just about anything to have their own room or even their own bunk and here we are, a ship to ourselves and we can't stand to be alone."

"Life's just not fair," she replied sarcastically. Katana remained silent for a few moments before speaking again. "What do you think will happen to the others?" Luke's answer was immediate and it surprised him how easily it came out.

"I don't know. The odds are against them." She seemed to agree, or at least accept his statement and began to pace around. Inside the room was a single bunk with a plain gray blanket pulled tight and a single pillow. Next to the bed on the opposite wall was a small table with a chair bolted to the carpeted floor, a small and thin black cushion sitting on top of the brushed metal chair which shared it's texture with the table. The final fixture was a small borough that occupied the back right corner between the wall and the table. Luke figured it was assigned to new officers just out of training because it was too lavish for enlisted but too Spartan for any ranking officer. Luke could see the turmoil in Katana's and walked over to her and lightly took her forearms. She looked up at him with two glistening streaks running down her soft cheeks, her eyes beginning to get red and puffy. He didn't say anything as he pulled her in close and comforted her, his left hand massaging her head and neck while his right hand sat on the small of her back. "I need you here with me right now. I'm sure the road ahead is going to be tough and I don't think I can make it if you're not by my side." Leaning back a little, he gently cupped her head in his hands while she wrapped her arms around his back. Staring into her eyes he looked for a signal from her and finally got one in the form of a weak smile that quickly grew in strength. He leaned in to her and rubbed his nose up against hers before finally pressing his lips to hers. They kissed for a few seconds before releasing from each other.

"Thanks for that, I just needed to let it out," she said, wiping the tears off of her cheek and recomposing herself before walking towards the door. She was about to walk out the door when she stopped. "You're giving me very mixed messages about you and I." She disappeared through the bulkhead, leaving Luke alone in his room again.

"Yeah…I know…" he said after she was long gone.


	11. The Other Side

"The Other Side"

"_Sword, this Overwatch, can you confirm the target has been eliminated?_" Luke recognized that by not killing Nicole Yates he was deciding the rest of his life at this very moment. His left hand was trembling as he stood still but it wasn't from the cold, rather, he was trembling from the fear that was permeating his body. Finally he reached up to his left ear and pulled out a small clear receiver that sat in his ear cannel and held it in his hand for a few seconds before tossing it into the shimmering water next to him. He clicked the safety onto his pistol and removed the silencer before putting it into a holster in his jacket and turning way from Yates.

"Thank-you…thank-you for listening to reason." Luke had been walking away when she was speaking but stopped the moment she finished.

"Let me make one thing clear, had we met under any other circumstances you would've had two bullets in your chest and a third rattling around in your skull. All my life I've made decisions whether or not to kill an enemy so don't you _dare _begin to think that you're in some way special because I let you live today. You've just been given a new lease on life so I suggest you use it wisely or else I'll be there to kill you myself and I swear to God, I will make sure it is the most painful fucking experience of your life. Got it?" The anger in his voice was so strong that he didn't expect a response from her. Adjusting his outfit, he continued to walk off the pier and towards the city. He knew the clean up teams would be moving in any second and he needed to get some distance from the target or else they'd start looking for him and trying to find out why he didn't do the job. All of the conflicts within Luke had consolidated into a single purpose that was swelling up inside. from this point on he was going to be the one making decisions for what was right. From this point on he was no longer the UNSC's tool.

* * *

"The augmentation process is, in principle, quite simple but there is a lot of room for error and there's a chance that at least one of you will be crippled in the process. But despite all of these risks, the rewards will more than make up for the danger we'll be putting you through." Team Hurricane sat in a small room with Dr. Allara as she explained the procedure they were about to be put through. They were onboard the UNSC Arakoa, a medical ship stationed near some asteroid field who's name no one had bothered mentioning. The walls of the ship seemed to be built out of a self-illuminating white metal that bathed the entire place in an angelic glow which softened everyone's features and made them look years younger and more beautiful. Luke assumed the design had something to do with the healing process but it took some getting used to after having lived in the most utilitarian of environments for the past few years. The four soldiers were dressed in their BDUs which served to heighten the lighting effect of the walls as they all seemed to be dressed in jet black body suits and were instantly recognized when they were surrounded by doctors in their white lab coats and gray uniforms. "We're going to be focusing on enhancing your physical abilities such as strength and speed and your mental abilities like reaction times, sight, and mental capacity. In the end, it won't be unlike the modifications that the Spartan-IIs when through a few years ago. But there is one crucial difference. Rachel?" Looking at a holotank away from the door, it hummed to life as an AI flickered into the view while the walls dimmed slightly so that she could be seen better. Rachel glowed a soft purple color with information moving over her petite body, her curled hair sitting on bare shoulders.

"Good morning doctor," she replied in a soft but refined voice, a hint of an accent that caused her to hold her "r's" longer than normal. "To accentuate your psychic tendencies, we've designed a series of focusers and amplifiers that will sit inside your skull." Replacing Rachel was a diagram of what appeared to be some sort of tiara that had a number of small pads connected together by thin wires.

"Ironically, this will be the easiest part of the operation and will be completed last. I'd just like to warn you that it still may take some time before you will be able to fully control and understand your abilities, this device will merely provide an opportunity to have a much higher level of control once we've trained you further." None of the soldiers said anything as Allara remained still in front of her, Rachel slowly shifting colors while adjusting her pose with her hands clasped behind her back.

"When will we be able to be put onto active duty? Like how long will the recovery last?" Claymore asked.

"It depends, you won't be combat ready for at least a month and a half, possibly two months. But if there are any complications it'll add to the recovery considerably, if there will even be a recovery at all."

"Doctor? Medical station Echo is reporting that they are ready to receive the patients." Rachel turned to Allara and gave her he news in a matter-of-fact tone. Luke wondered if Rachel was one of the rare smart AIs that the UNSC used for their capital ships but doubted they would give such a valuable construct to a medical ship.

"Alright, follow me."

Team Hurricane found themselves in a small locker room that was located next to the room where their gurneys and the rest of the medical team waited for them. There were two small benches that sat in the space between the two rows of lockers and four white gowns sat folded in a pile, ready for them to change into. Luke took off his coat and hung it up in one of the lockers and dropped his pants, revealing the skin tight under suit that he was wearing underneath. The rest of the team followed suit and proceeded to strip their clothes off, comfortable with seeing each in the bare after living together for three years in conditions that quickly forced modesty and shyness out of their system.

"I've never actually had a surgery before," Katana said. Luke turned around to face her as she took her top off but for some reason he couldn't look at her and continued to turn to his left to see his other two teammates who were closer to the door.

"I did when I was younger, appendectomy," Dagger replied to her. "It's not so bad I guess. We'll be knocked out sooner than we know it and then you wake up. Then again…this isn't as simple as getting an appendix removed." Out of the corner of his eye he saw Katana look over at him and then pull her pants down and he turned back towards the wall and gingerly pulled his pants down too before quickly reaching for his gown quickly. For whatever reason, Luke had developed some sort of mental block towards Katana and he wondered if the feelings that were developing between the two of them were beginning to impair him. This wasn't the time for something like that and he knew he'd have plenty of time to discuss things with her when they were recovering. Knocking him out of his thought process was a rapping of knuckles on the closed door to their room and a voice asking if they were ready. Dagger replied that they were almost good to go. Reaching back behind, he struggled with the ties on the gown but felt a familiar pair of fingers take the loose strings from his hand.

"Here," Katana said, "let me help you out there." For a second he thought of protesting but decided against it and let her do the job. "You're not too good about keeping your feelings secret," she said, pressing her body up against his as she pretended to tie the other knots.

"I'm just a little stressed, if you could believe it," he whispered back, his head turned slightly towards her mouth. "Let's save this for later though, I don't want to have any hard feelings before doing something like this."

"I understand," she replied, sounding a little put off but said nothing else. She stepped away from with a soft pat on his back and joined the other two by the door as they waited in silence. Luke walked to the front of them where they'd left space and he stood still for a few seconds, unwillingly to open the door.

"Regardless of whatever happens during the procedure, just know that I would've died for all of you," Luke said with his head down.

"And we would've died for you," Dagger replied. Fighting back the tingles around his eyes that threatened to send a tear down his cheek, Luke opened the door and was greeted by an army of doctors and nurses who immediately swarmed the four of them and prepped them for surgery. Luke was led to the first gurney and laid down in it while IVs were stuck into his wrist and arms, pumping him full of antibiotics and fluids. Monitoring pads were slapped onto different parts of his bodies while they checked his blood pressure. Claymore was in the bed next to Luke and looked over at him and extended his right arm which was covered in wires and tubes. It took a second for Luke to understand what it was that he wanted but he gave him his left hand and they clasped them together tightly.

"I'll see you on the other side?" Without knowing it, the doctors had begun to administer the sedative and Luke was beginning to lose his grip on reality. It took all his effort to force out his words.

"I'll see you on the other side."

**A/N: Huge, huge apologies for such a long delay in getting this up. I was pretty sick for a week and then I was tossed into writing a number of papers that took away from my time for the story. I've finished a new chapter which I'm really happy with and I should get back on schedule of updating the story. Thanks for reading and I hope you enjoy!**


	12. The Right Nerve

"The Right Nerve"

"Welcome back, soldier. I hope you had a nice nap because it's probably the last one you'll have in a long time." For a few seconds Luke was unable to open his eyes but his lids finally gave way and he flashed them open, the bright light of the room hitting his dilated pupils and sending a blast of pain throughout his skull. "Sorry about that," the familiar female voice said, the AI Rachel speaking to him through the room's speaker system before appearing on a pedestal near the right side of his bed. Through his eyelids he could tell the lights had been dimmed and he chanced another blast of light as he opened his lids. This time, though, the normally white walls were a dark gray color as the amount of light they produced or reflected was turned down dramatically. "You're the first one to wake up but the others have been administered the waking agent." Looking down at his right arm he could see the veins around an IV were raised and red, the pathways tangling up and down his arm. Whatever they used to wake him up had a hell of a kick and definitely did it's job. "Let's go sweetie," Rachel said in a mock comforting tone.

"Yeah…yeah…I'm getting up," he struggled to say, his throat scratchy and sore from the tubes that had been stuck down it. Coughing, he pushed himself up off of the bed with his elbows, the warm white sheets pulled tight across him which suggested the bed had been made recently. Through all of this he had ignored the sirens that were still calling out in the background but now that his senses were coming back he heard them and looked around to see what the source was. Rachel seemed to see this and gave him an answer.

"There was a battle with the Covenant in the area and the wounded are arriving now. Dr. Allara had planned on greeting each of you when you woke up but they needed all the hands they could get and so I was tasked with the job."

"Oh, ok…that's fine," he responded with his eyes closed, his right hand wiping across his forehead. He could feel that his head had been shaved down when the short stubble poked against his head and while he'd been used to having his hair just at the liberal end of regulation, he had no problems with it like this and felt the rest of his head. His hand stopped, though, when a dull pain shot across his scalp as his fingers brushed up against a row of sutures just behind his ears where a large swathe of hair had been completely shaved down. "How did the procedures go?"

"As well as we could've hoped, especially for you." Rachel had an almost shocked look on her face when she finished speaking but Luke knew that it was for show, even a "dumb" AI, if that's what she was, wouldn't say anything they didn't mean to say.

"What do you mean?" She had turned away from Luke, staring at the frosted glass wall that led into the hallway, shadowy figures moving past quickly. When he inquired about what she said Rachel looked around mischievously before leaning in towards him as if no one could hear what she was about to say.

"You're different," she said in a hushed tone. "You were already the strongest, fastest, and smartest of the group and they wanted to see how far they could push you. I'm happy to say you met their challenges without flinching." Luke didn't say anything as he laid in the bed, motionless. "I truly pity those who will stand in your way," she added after a few moments of silence.

"If you're talking about the Covenant…I have no pity for them." She let out a cackle of laughter when she heard this.

"Your killer instinct can't be contained!" Something about her demeanor put Luke off but he ignored this and began to move about in his bed some more. The sheets peeled away from him and he instantly noticed the increased muscle mass and definition in his arms and chest. He found it odd that after his extended stay in the bed would've led to a large amount of muscle atrophy but it seemed as if the opposite was true and he had _gained _muscles. All across his arms, and his legs after tossing the sheets aside, were small red dots that were centered over the bones in his body. "It's a composite ceramic resin that was injected onto the bones which has made them nearly unbreakable. If one does happen to snap somehow, that'll be the least of your worries I can assure you. And by the way, your muscles have been injected with a protein cocktail that has been, and will continue to, increase your muscle mass and overall strength. We've increased your eyesight by upping the flow of blood to the back of your eyeballs as well as implanting some micro-filaments into your nervous systems to give you much faster reflexes. Your thyroid gland has also been stimulated which will give you even more muscle mass and increase your bone strength. Thankfully they were able to avoid that barbaric procedure of implanting a pellet into the brain like those Spartans had to endure…" As she spoke, Luke continued to examine his body which was feeling more and more different as each moment passed.

"Spartans?" he finally asked.

"Oh yes, you can consider them your grandparents in the sense that the II series, followed by the III series, all had these same procedures to make them some of mankind's greatest warriors. Despite being from different projects, some might argue calling you a Spartan IV…but that's neither here nor there…" she said, trailing off.

"When can I start moving around?"

"We need to wait for-." Rachel was interrupted as one of the frosted panels in the front of the room went completely clear and opened up, Dr. Allara entering the room in a pair of freshly pressed blue scrubs and a white lab coat.

"Nice to see you finally awake, Sword. I assume Rachel has been getting you up to speed on the details of the procedure?"

"Yes ma'am, she has been." Allara nodded an approval and moved over to a screen on the left side of his bed and began to look over data as she flicked through menus and file trees. Seemingly satisfied with what she was seeing, she turned to Luke with a small smile on her face.

"Everything checks out, you're recovering exactly according to schedule. We're going to move you to a new area of the ship that has been cordoned off for you and your team to get back up to speed."

A single nurse was pushing Luke's enormous bed as she made her way through the extra wide hallways. Made from the same self-illuminating material as the other areas of the ship, they were bathed in the bright white light that messed with Luke's perceptions due to the lack of shadows. Until this moment he had yet to see the rest of his team and there were some butterflies in his stomach because, despite being the first to be woken, he was the last to be reunited. Stopping at what seemed to be a non-descript portion of the wall, the nurse tapped a slightly blue area and the portion went completely clear before sliding open. Inside was a second, much smaller hallway that seemed to lead to an open room. From his view he was able to see what looked like the foot of a bed while the adjacent wall had a cluster of lockers painted in a jarring black against the white walls. Finally emerging into the room, he was greeted by a handful of doctors who came over to him almost immediately. They set out removing the cables and wires from his body while doing a quick examination of him before one of them gave him the go ahead to get out of the gurney. Shifting off to the side, he glanced over at the four beds and saw Claymore, Dagger, and Katana standing off to the side in what looked like military pajamas. The other two boys had their heads shaved down like Luke's with the same scars on the sides. Katana got off luckier with her brown hair getting cut to just below her ears and while she had obviously attempted to cover up the scars, the complete lack of hair underneath was too noticeable. He flashed a quick smile to them before he got out of the bed and stood up, his legs shaking slightly. There was a breeze against his backside as the gown he was wearing opened up a little and one of the nurses handed him a perfectly folded stack of clothing. He quickly put them on but was startled when a familiar voice chimed in from the back of the room. sr

"Good to see the four of you made it through the augmentations unscathed; I'd hate to lose my most promising team to something they couldn't put up a fight." Lieutenant June pushed himself away from the corner he was leaning in and walked into the center of the room, near Luke. His eyes were immediately drawn to the right side of the Lieutenant's face where there was now a large amount of scarring from what Luke guessed would've been some sort of explosion which also contributed to the scars that were cut across his face and neck. Whatever had hit him seemed to have also injured his right arm which showed scars from skin grafts and other physical damage. There was a second where Luke considered asking how it happened but he knew that June was most likely here either because he was unfit for combat and couldn't be with his squad or he was the only one who survived the ordeal and he let it pass.

"Yes sir. I'd rather die on my feet than unconscious on some table," Luke said to June as their eyes locked. The Lieutenant didn't respond to this but nodded an approval before putting his hands on his hips and pacing a little bit.

"I want you guys to get a good night sleep because tomorrow is going to be the start of the hardest period of your lives. The UNSC needs you four out on the battlefield and we're more than happy to oblige. We're going to begin with a breaking in of your reflexes and strength before we move into the other areas, finally coming to your armor." He didn't say anything else as he walked out of the room and locked the door behind him.

The room was completely dark as Luke stared up at the nondescript ceiling above him. He was already seeing some of the enhancements to his eyes because, despite the room being almost completely dark, he was able to see as if there was a soft lamp on except he was seeing things in shades of gray and blue. His blankets were tucked around his waist as he brought his arms back up behind head and cradled it in his hands. Luke knew that this was probably the last night where he would be able to just not worry about anything because, if June was right, they'd be going into hell in a few hours and wouldn't be leaving till they died or the war was over. It was a sobering thought but it didn't make him sad or feel sorry for himself, ever since he was a kid he'd assumed he'd die on some battlefield in the war and he wasn't being let down. Looking over at the rest of his squad, he could see that they were all resting peacefully which brought a smile across his face. It wasn't the first time that he was watching over them before something big was about to happen. Finally, he focused on Katana who had a small smile on her face while her hands were clasped together beneath her head as she lie on her side. No matter what, he knew that the feelings he had for her would always be there but he had also come to realize that they were they were soldiers first, lovers second and that that wouldn't change until this war was over. He resolved to tell her that he would be waiting for her the moment the Covenant was destroyed…or they knew they were going to die, whichever came first. As he watched her, the dryness in his eyes signaling a need for sleep hit him and he shut his eyelids, letting himself fall into a deep slumber.

* * *

"Get your asses up!" June screamed in the room, jolting Luke awake. It hardly took a split second for him to rolling out of bed onto his feet and scurrying to the front of the bed. Snapping to attention he could see the other four hop to the foots of their bed and stand perfectly still. "You have five minutes to be ready to move out. You're not in these exact spots in that period of time and you'll have hell to pay." Not doubting June's threat, Luke divvied up duties.

"Claymore, Dagger, do anything in the bathroom that you need to do. Katana, get dressed." They repeated acknowledgements as the two boys ran into the bathroom and relieved themselves while quickly brushing their teeth. Beneath each of the beds was a small locker that held their outfits. Loose dark gray sweats matched with a light gray shirt, they had a pair of black underwear and a pair of lightweight shoes that seemed more like baby booties than actual shoes which seemed to suggest they wouldn't be doing too much running. Standing up with the clothes in his hands, he glanced over at Katana who was fiddling with a sports bra while standing completely nude, ignoring him. Quickly changing into his clothes, Claymore and Dagger came back out as they replaced them. The two sinks were covered in toothpaste and spit and he grabbed one of the clear sticks and spread a little bit of blue gel onto the head before scrubbing furiously. As he did this Katana was sitting on the single toilet with her own toothbrush in her mouth.

"Did you get any sleep last night?" She asked, her speech muddled by the brush.

"Yup, you?" he replied, suffering from the same speech impediment. She grunted a yes as she stood up and washed her hands. Walking off, she smacked his rear and stood at attention next to her bed. It was hard for Luke to hold back the smile that was insisting on creeping across his face but he managed and took a deep breath. June was walking back in as he snapped his arms against his side and stared directly in front of him.

"Alright, let's move out." He motioned for them to follow as he led the way, dressed in a freshly pressed pair of ODST ACUs. Walking down the hallways, they were much darker than normal which seemed to indicate most of the crew was still asleep and it was "night" onboard. They didn't travel far before entering what looked like a workout room. The floor was covered in a jet black mat that seemed to give ever so slightly as Luke walked across it. "We're going to have to get you four back up to speed with your skills and the augmentations. I want to start off with close combat before we start looking at anything else." June had moved to the center of the room and turned back around to face them before he motioned for Luke to come towards him. "You and are going to spar until you beat me, got it?"

"Yes sir," Luke said while nodding to the Lieutenant. Spreading his legs apart a little bit, he hunched down as he shield his upper body and his face with his arms which were outstretched and angled upwards. June did the same and seemed to be light on his feet as he began tip toe around Luke, their eyes locked. The Lieutenant made the first move as Luke frantically parried off a right hook before shuffling back a few feet and trying to regain his stance. He could feel a sluggishness in his limbs which was probably due to atrophy from the surgery. At the same time there were hints of speed that he didn't have before but seemed to, frustratingly, be trapped behind his dulled nerves. June launched another quick flurry of punches that Luke managed to block but he was having a hard time keeping up with the Lieutenant who was obviously at the top of his game. Planting his he jabbed with his right arm which was pushed off by June who saw the left hook coming in and ducked out of the way. Luke didn't realize his mistake until it was too late and he felt a solid boot slam into his chest and push him back a few feet, leaving him sprawling out on the ground while frantically trying to recover. Coughing as he got up onto his feet he saw that June hadn't moved from where he was.

"Is that all you've got? All this enhancements and abilities and I'm kicking your ass without even breaking a sweat? You make me sick."

"I'm doing the best I can at the moment," Luke replied, weaker than he had intended.

"I don't give a fuck!" Luke clenched his teeth when June yelled out but he didn't say anything. "UNSC soldiers are dying every moment and you're sitting here telling me that you can't take me down with everything stacked in your favor?!" He didn't wait for an answer as he rushed towards Luke and began to punch him time after time. Impacting his ribs and his chest, Luke tightened up and put his arms in front of his face and breastbone as he weathered the assault, unable to block a punch. Pain was shooting up and down his ribcage and sent stabbing jolts through his back every time he tried to take a breath. Finally unable to take anymore, he flexed his upper body and pushed June away in a single movement before readying himself again. Ready or not, he was going to have to force himself to be what they'd built him to be because he knew June would probably kill him before he let him off easy. It was time to be ruthless. Almost jogging forward he stayed loose with his arms at his side before swinging his right arm into June's left with enough force to throw him off-balance just a little bit. Before the Lieutenant had time to react, Luke kicked with his right leg with all his strength which sent June reeling, obviously not prepared for this sudden ferocity. "Seen it all before Luke!" June said with his arms up in the air, taunting him. "You were like this when we came and picked you up….Hell, that pretty little girl you had with you put up a bigger fight then you. Then again she was fighting to save her life while you're just fighting because I told you to." This was too far and June knew it which was probably why he said it. Luke had done everything in his power over the past few years to block that night out of his mind and in one second it all came flooding back in a wave of emotion that he was having a hard time controlling. His hands were shaking with rage as he remained planted on the padded floor, a cocky smile creeping across June's face as he realized he'd hit the nerve he was looking.

"She didn't need to die!" he finally yelled out.

"Oh, can it Sword, that was four years ago! Everyone you love will be dead eventually so why even bother getting close to anyone?" Luke wasn't going to get baited by June anymore and ran at him. Just before his head smashed into June's sternum Luke began to feel something different creep through his body. Every nerve in his body seemed to come alive and time felt as if it was moving through molasses but he wasn't. As June stumbled backwards, Luke bolted forward and swept his leg under the Lieutenant's which kept him floating in the air. For the final blow he cocked his right arm back and slammed it into the side of June's which slammed him into the mat and stunned him. Rushing over, Luke grabbed pinned one of June's arms into the small of his back with one of his knees while the other was pinned into the mat. Squeezing his head into the mat with his right arm, Luke leaned in.

"How does it feel to be in my position?" he hissed into June's ear. In one fluid motion, Luke had subdued June in a little over two seconds.

**A/N: This chapter was a real frustration for me when I was writing it. I think I ended up with four separate versions of it that were completed but I scrapped because I thought they were crap. I still think it's pretty bad but the stories that I tell in it needed to come out one way or another. You guys will be the juge of how it turned out I suppose.**


	13. Jormungandr

"Jormungandr"

"There are three targets…one of which has hostile intent towards me." A black scarf was pulled tight over Luke's eyes blacking the world out to him as he stood perfectly still in the center of a large room, his head hung low. Despite this, the scarf might as well not be there because Luke could clearly see everything that he needed to know without trouble. "Hostile is located at my two o'clock," he said, extending his arm in the direction of the man who was holding a M6D in his hand. "The other two targets are located at six and seven o'clock," he said, pointing at the two nurses who were standing patiently, smiling to each other as they watched Luke.

"That is correct, Sword," Dr. Allara said, also signaling him to remove the scarf which he did, blinking in the bright white light. After two months of practice and training, the four of them were nearing the end of their training and were preparing to be deployed to battle the Covenant wherever they were needed. The doctor was just performing the last of her tests of their latent psychic abilities that were unlocked with the surgery. It had come slowly at first, dull pings in his mind that he wasn't able to control but as time went on and he focused more and more, it became like second nature to him. Standing in a room he was able to "feel" where each person was at and sense what it was they were feeling. It's practicality would be immeasurable the minute he found himself in the field and would need to quickly identify targets and find any sort of danger around him. Dr. Allara walked away from her computer and opened up the door panel and let the other three members of Team Hurricane in. They were dressed in jet black ACUs that had minimal markings on them which were limited to a patch with an Eagle sitting atop Earth wrapped in a ribbon that had "UNSC" in the center on their right shoulders, a smaller patch on their left shoulder that had a dark thunderhead sitting above an angry sea to represent Project TEMPEST. The only difference was between the three of them and Luke. On their left sleeves they had a silver eagle perched atop a single yellow chevron while Luke had a silver bar attached to each side of his lapels. Like promised by June nearly four months earlier, Luke had been given the rank of Lieutenant Junior Grade while the rest of his squad had been promoted to Petty Officer Third Class. Thankfully, the difference in rank hadn't caused any problems between them because between them they were nothing more than metal on their uniforms but Luke knew that around other soldiers problems may arise. Wringing his hands together for a few seconds, Luke joined the rest of his squad as the rest of the room emptied out save for the doctor.

"Ma'am, how much longer are we going to be doing these tests? I don't think I need any more practice at this," Luke said once the door closed.

"Good question. We aren't, your training has been completed and we're ready to get you into your suits for some shakedown runs." This was the best news Luke had heard in a long while and looking over at the rest of his squad, he could see that they were just as happy. "Just follow me."

Dr. Allara had led them through a long series of corridors until they reached a more utilitarian part of the hospital ship, devoid of the self-illuminating walls and replaced with the more typical olive drag used in most of the UNSC fleet. They finally arrived in a small locker room that seemed to be completely unused. She led them into it and stood at the front of the benches as they filed in behind her.

"The first thing we're going to need you to put on this special undersuit. It's got a small layer of crystalline weave that will enhance your speed and strength even more. There's also a proto-type hydrostatic gel layer which will help reduce injuries as well as automatically seal any breaches to the suit and cauterize any wounds you might've received. As a small level of comfort, it'll better regulate your comfort level by allowing you to manually adjust atmospheric pressure and heat." The four of them listened intently as she listed off the features of the undersuit. "These four lockers over here," she said while motioning towards the row to her left, "have them hanging up inside. Sword, yours is first, followed by Dagger, Claymore, and Katana. If you can just change into those quickly we'll move on." Stepping outside, she left the four of the to change.

"I'm so excited. We've been training for two years for this moment and it's almost here," Dagger said as he opened up the locker and stared at the neck to toe black suit that was hanging up. Luke opened up his locker and saw his suit hanging up as well. Instead of being one solid suit he could see that it was actually a piece for each limb sewn onto a torso section. Pulling it off the hangar he could feel the soft gel layer that was remarkably thin but was resistant to almost all pressure. There seemed to be a small layer of cushioning on his shoulders, chest, and thigh areas which would most likely see the most beating during a fight.

"Thankfully they didn't make these things one size fits all," Claymore commented as he stood in the nude, his feet sitting in the suit while it hung around his calves. Claymore had seen the biggest benefit from the physical augmentations and stood almost seven feet tall and was almost three hundred pounds of pure muscle. Luke wasn't far behind, standing a mere six feet seven and weighing two hundred and thirty the last time he weighed himself. Dagger and Katana weren't so enormous, both standing just a few inches over six feet with Dagger sitting north of two hundred while Katana steadfastly refused to tell them her weight although it didn't look like she had gained a pound. Putting the suit on the ground, Luke unzipped the back portion down towards the butt portion and pulled it up to his waste to cover himself up. It was a snug fit but wasn't uncomfortable as the inside had a thin comfort layer that felt like soft fuzz against his skin. As Luke was sticking his arms into the sleeves and pulling the suit across his chest, Dagger and Claymore walked out after zipping each other up, leaving him and Katana in the room.

"Mind helping?" she asked as she followed suit, pulling the suit up over her chest, the form fitting material accentuating her figure.

"As long as you repay the favor," Luke teased as he walked over and grabbed the zipper that rested on her rear. Pulling the two pieces together he zipped it up tight as she stood up a little straighter at the tightening. He turned around and waited for her to do the same for him. As he stood there he could feel her emotions as he waited but he had yet to identify what the emotion was. By process of elimination he had guessed that it was affection but he wasn't completely sure. He was pretty sure that she could also feel his stress and tension but it seemed that she wasn't going to say anything about it. He was wrong.

"What's up?" At first he didn't say anything but remained still until he slowly turned around.

"I can't get you out of my mind. That's what's up. We always have these talks about how we can't be together and I try and tell myself that thinking about you is wrong but I can't stop." It felt good to get the sudden weight off of his chest.

"We can't force ourselves to not be who we are, Sword. We don't need to stop loving each other, that's not what we have to do. What you have to do is control those emotions and know that our missions come first."

"I'm not that kind of person though. I can't do gray. Either we have to be together or we have to be nothing." Katana put her hand on her forehead and massaged it while she closed her eyes.

"What started this? What suddenly sparked this whole discussion?"

"I don't know…it's been building up and I could just sense that you were feeling something towards me. I…I…I don't know. I need to do something to change this situation."

"Then just do it already!" she yelled out at him. Luke clenched his teeth but didn't reply, turning out of the room and into the hallway. Dagger, Claymore, and Dr. Allara were all standing outside and were looking as if they didn't hear what was going on inside between Luke and Katana.

"Ready?" Dr. Allara said quietly before turning and moving down the hall. Luke remained in the back as Katana trailed behind, her head down. "The armor that you'll be using is a prototype that we're preparing to roll out to the Spartans soon so we're actually going to be beating them to something for once. The armor is being codenamed JORMUNGANDR and is a variant of the MJOLNIR used by the Spartan-IIs. You have two distinct advantages over the current MJOLNIR Mark IV that is in the field at the moment and that's the inclusion of shielding technology similar to that used by the Elites and Jackals and stealth capabilities. On each of the plates of armor as well as the undersuit there is a layer of photo-reactive cells that will mimic their surroundings as best as possible. It's not perfect and compared to the Covenant it's rather primitive but it may make the difference between life or death." Allara was still leading them along before she stopped in front of a large blast door that was locked tight. Off to the side was a small control panel that hummed to life when she neared it and sat waiting for her to scan her hand. She placed her right palm onto the screen and waited as an optical scanner appeared at eye level and projected a light onto her iris. To complete the scanning, she spoke her name and waited as the machine authenticated her three different inputs.

"Hello Dr. Allara. Bringing the children to see their new toys?" Rachel said from the speaker near the door.

"Yeah, we'll be getting them suited up and broken into the armor system." This last little bit between Rachel and Allara was the final security measure which began the unlocking sequence. Heavy thuds and servos whining filled the air before a deep groaning reverberated through the walls as the two heavy doors opened up.

"Could you use any more security, ma'am?" Dagger quipped as they waited for the blast doors to pull apart more.

"Most likely. There's was some apprehension about bringing it here instead of the _Kamiak_ but we convinced them that it was secure enough." The room they were entering looked like a sort of maintenance bay that had been taken over by the TEMPEST team. All along the walls were metal workbenches and tool cages that seemed to have been abandoned at a moment's notice. On the other side of the room was a wall sized door that Luke assumed lead into a hangar or another maintenance bay. The most obvious additions were the smattering of equipment in the room that was manned by about ten technicians who were waiting patiently. A large container was sitting off to the left where two armed Marines were standing guard and off to the right was a small pedestal that was sitting under a servo bundle whose arms were idling above the platform. As Allara and the rest of Hurricane walked all the way into the room, the doors promptly began to close as a technician made his way towards the doctor.

"Hello Dr. Allara. We've run all of the preliminary tests and conduced a through examining of each armor set so all we need to do is get them into it and run the calibration programs."

"Excellent, who's first?" The technician pulled up his datapad and read it quickly.

"Sword." The doctor looked at him with a smile and waved him forward. Luke hesitated for a second before he followed the technician over to the pedestal as the container was opened up. Two more techs wandered in and carted out an odd looking machine. There was a large base resting on the dolly that extended up about eight feet before extending out another three or four to where a large forked piece hung downwards. "Putting the armor on won't be this complicated. Once you've got a feeling for how it's all put together and the weight of it you'll be able to do all of this yourself with a little bit of assistance from your squad members."

"Understood." They waited a little bit as a box was a crated out of the contained and wheeled over towards Luke and the robotic arms.

"You'll see that each component of the armor is pretty easy to put on. It's easiest to show you once we've got it opened up." Luke nodded as he stood awkwardly, waiting for the technicians to open up the silver crate in front of him. After a few seconds of fiddling, the front swung open and revealed one of the most amazing things Luke had ever seen. Nestled into the foam padding was a black suit of armor that was nothing like he'd ever seen before. His eyes were instantly drawn to the helmet which sat at the very top, it's silver metallic visor reflecting the world around him at distorted angles but kept the colors exactly the same. The technicians worked together to lift one of the boots and thigh portions up and hoisted it towards his right leg before setting it down on the pedestal. With the press of a button that Luke didn't see, the rear portion released and extended out on a series of small pistons which made enough room for Luke to slip his leg in. The armor design was an interesting one which seemed to be the convergence of two different philosophies. It avoided being bulky and tank-like but retained sharp lines and edges as it seemed to follow the shape of Luke's body. There was a thin but sufficient layer of padding on the inside of the armor that kept him firmly secured as the calf portion sealed tight against his leg and the kneepad attached itself to his undersuit and provided support for his joint. They did this with the other leg which anchored Luke to the spot because nothing had been powered yet. Continuing to armor him, they attached the thigh portions which protected the outside and front and back two-thirds of his legs before giving way to a set of four scaled plates that allowed for movement from his legs. His groin plate wrapped around his waist and was joined together when the center portion came up between his legs and locked the two sides into place, protecting his intestines and other vital organs in his lower torso.

"Alright, we're going to attached the chest plate now because the weight will be too much for you to bear without the crystal layer active," the tech said as the black piece was removed from the case by the robotic arms and split apart for him to put on. A few technicians scrambled to the back and guided the piece over his head and then attached a few small cables to his undersuit. Before locking it in completely, one of them opened the panel that allowed access to the fusion generator and the main processing boards. A few seconds of fiddling passed before there was a quiet hum as the generator and computers came online, feeding power into the undersuit. Coming alive with energy, the crystal layer allowed Luke move his feet which were now encased in the armor. They closed the chest piece together and removed the robotic arms but he couldn't feel the weight on him which was surprising. It was comprised of two layers of armor, a piece that protected his ribs and sternum and a second, much larger piece that extended over his chest and shoulders where two air intakes sat, feeding air to the electronics as well as into the filter for Luke to breathe. His shoulders pad had a thick fin that tapered as it went up which protected his upper arms and would deflect any shots from the side which might hit his neck. It wrapped completely around his biceps but a quick flex of Luke's muscles showed that there was ample room for him to tense up if need be. He slipped his hands into his gauntlets which had a second layer of material for his hands which was extra heavy duty for the inevitable wear and tear he'd be putting on his gloves. The technician handed him the final piece of the armor, his helmet, and let Luke hold it. Looking into the silver visor, he could see his face mirrored perfectly in the glass and stared at it for a few seconds. The helmet had an almost stealth look to it, the top portion featuring two protrusions that extended out a few inches into what looked like a set of blades while the mouth area came together in sharp lines, the air lines near the chin and the flashlights on either side of his eyes the only breaks in the armor plating.

"Once you put the helmet on we'll seal the suit up and begin the diagnostics program to get everything up to speed for you."

"Alright," Luke said as he rotated the helmet in his hand and slid his head through the padding. Initially there was a wave of claustrophobia but he quickly got over it and took a few breaths as he looked around through the visor. He was a little worried about the visibility provided by the visor and found himself having to move his head about to see what he would normally be able to see in his periphery. The technician moved in front of him and gave him a thumbs up with a look on his face that was questioning if he was alright. Luke nodded and the tech leaned to the side and waved to someone. He felt pressure on his back as the plate was reopened and someone did something to the inside. A moment later, there was a series of beeps which was quickly followed by a holographic projection appearing in front of his face, command chains scrolling in front of him.

"_Welcome to the JORMUNGANDR Powered Assault Armor, user Sword_," a soft female voice said to him with a British accent through the helmet's speakers. "I _will begin to run diagnostics at this time to determine proper functioning of the JORMUNGANDR._"

"Ok," Luke replied almost instinctively, feeling a little embarrassed at this.

"Sword? Can I have you step over here while the program is running? We're going to begin outfitting the rest of the squad," the tech said, pointing to the side of the room by a bench. Looking in that direction, Luke pivoted and began to move over to where he was pointing, amazed at the fact that he couldn't even feel the armor on him and actually felt more nimble. There was a slight awkwardness to everything with the increased height that the armor provided, probably around four or five inches all together and Luke found himself having to make deliberate steps to avoid tripping. Information continued to scroll across the HUD as the different armor pieces were being examined one by one. After a few moments, it finished and the voice spoke to him again.

"_Suit integrity at one hundred percent. I will now seal the suit and check atmospheric pressures. During this process, I will check the hydrostatic gel and reactive crystal layer. You may feel some discomfort but please do be distressed as it is all within normal operating limits and will not cause injury_." When she finished speaking, there was a tingling around Luke's neck and he felt the top portion of his undersuit peel away from his skin as it attached itself to the edges of the helmet, sealing the suit in from the outside air. There was a hiss and whistle as the air was cycled out and the seal tightened before the edges of the helmet inflated slightly and tightened up around his neck. Another moment passed and he could feel the suit getting progressively colder until he was almost shivering before it began to climb back up to the pint of being uncomfortable before it settled back at it's original layer.

"_I will begin to test the reactive gel layer now. You may feel considerable pressure on your body but it will not exceed normal limits. Any problems will immediately trigger an expulsion of gel to relieve pressure." _Standing absolutely still, he watched as Dagger was fitted with his chest piece and they did the same things in his rear panel as they did to Luke. The whole time, Luke could feel the gel layer pushing harder and harder against his body as his head pounded more and more from the blood getting trapped in his skull. Struggling to get a breath, he started coughing while trying to get a breath just as the pressure completely released and the pounding his extremities lessened.

"_All systems are operating at one hundred percent. I will now activate the combat display_." The lines of computer data disappeared as a floating blue "Welcome" appeared and then disappeared into a grid of lines that popped into view. In an almost vertigo inducing event, the view from his visor expanded out in all directions which eliminated the dead zones from the physical sides of the helmet. The grid faded away and left a circular radar in the bottom left of his HUD and an ammo counter in the top right side which was displaying no ammo and no weapon.

"This is pretty need," Luke said to himself as he looked around the display which was seamless with the actual visor.

"_You may navigate the menu system at any time with the use of your neural interface_," she said, referring to the adaptor that had been implanted into his skull during the surgeries. With it, he would be able to use just his mind to control the menus and other features without having to resort to voice commands or physically controlling it. "_While your suit is combat ready, your shield system and photo-reactive cells have not been activated and must be done independently of this diagnostic._" Standing in his corner, awkwardly, Luke moved about to get a feel of the armor which was already feeling like a second skin to him as he flexed his fingers and legs. One of the technicians looked at her data pad and then at him before hurrying over to him.

"Sir, has the diagnostic completed?" she asked, catching Luke a little off-guard at an enlisted referring to him as "sir."

"Yes," he replied to the brunette.

"Could you follow me, sir?" she said as she spun around and walked over towards the enormous blast doors opposite of where they entered. On the way he passed by Dagger who turned his left hand out which Luke slapped nonchalantly. Arriving next to a control panel, she tapped a few codes in and waited as the enormous doors slid apart rather quickly, revealing an hangar full of C709 Longsword Interceptors waiting patiently for pilots. "We've set aside this area for you to break the suit in and get used to the enhancements. Once all of you have warmed up we'll test the shields and stealth technologies. Luke gave a quick salute to return hers as she walked back towards Katana who was being fitted for her armor. Moving inside the hangar, Luke planned what he was going to do first.


	14. The Cole Protocol

"The Cole Protocol"

Despite running lap after lap across the hangar Luke was hardly breathing hard as he tested the limits of the suit and what it was allowing him to do. Bringing up some of the measurements on his suit he had reached a speed of almost thirty miles an hour but he couldn't sustain it for long before running out of hangar space or feeling the lactic acid build up too quickly. With the JORMUNGANDR, all of their biological enhancements were brought together which led to reaction times that were almost instantaneous and hearing and eye sight that prevented anything from going unnoticed. The others had all gotten their armor and were doing the same as he was as their suits fine tuned themselves to operate at maximum efficiency. Lining up for his final run, the other three had just come back from a race that Dagger won handedly, something he'd been doing the entire time. Eyeing the wall, he leaned down and braced his feet before pushing off in a flash. Within a second or two he was already halfway across the room and was preparing to slow down for the turn or risk slamming into the wall and potentially damaging the hangar. Quickly stutter stepping, he lightly touched the wall and sprinted back towards the staging area where they were preparing to test their shields, the rest of Hurricane waiting as they brought the machine online. Just as he crossed the halfway point he was knocked off balance as the entire ship rocked violently, the lights dimming as alarms and klaxons began to blare. Bear clawing to his feet, he was almost shocked into inaction as he saw an enormous fireball erupt from the wall he had just touched. Spinning around, the entire wall melted away as the flames shot out and rolled across the floor in a superheated wave of destruction that engulfed the nearest Longsword. The explosion knocked the main hangar door loose which began to tear itself off the hinges as the atmosphere raced out into the vacuum of space. Then, in a deafening screeching of metal on metal, the door ripped completely out of it's housing and floated away from the ship, the star filled sky completely visible as white clouds of oxygen boiled into space. Turning around to get out of the area, the door leading to the maintenance hangar slammed shut in a split second as it sealed off the hangar from the rest of the ship. The rest of the atmosphere was sucked into space which smothered the flames and exposed a burned out chamber which had a few unexploded ordinance floating in weightlessness which suggested it was the ships ammo dump, at least for this hangar.

"_You have eighty-seven minutes of oxygen at this rate of consumption_," the computer chimed into him as he got up to his feet, the entire chain of events lasting no more than a few seconds.

"This is Sword, can anyone read me?" he called out over his short wave radio.

"_Sword, this is Dagger, we read you loud and clear. Are you alright_?"

"Affirmative, I just got knocked to my feet by the explosion but it looks like I'm stuck in here now unless I can get one of these sealed doors open." Moving about methodically, Luke was examining the different doors which all had bright red lights over them indicating they were sealed by the ship's computer and wouldn't open until pressure had been restored. "What's going on?"

"_Uh…nothing too clear at this point but it looks like some Covenant forces stumbled across us. They're getting Bugle on the radio right now for an evac to the _Kamiak_."_

"Alright…good. I really only have one way out of here and I'm going to need a destination before I try it." Staring at the gaping hole in the side of the ship, Luke was dreading the climb that he was probably going to have to make to get to the other hangar. Moving over towards the edge, he peered into the maw of space and was absolutely stunned by the beauty of it all but snapped out of it as a silver craft slowly shifted from the rear of the craft to the starboard side, it's point lasers lancing across the silver skinned ship they were on, plumes of flame and debris jettisoned out into space.

"_Sword, I'm talking to one of the crewmembers who's saying that the weapons depot should have multiple airlocks into it so if the door is locked just pry it open and get in that way._"

"It's worth a shot," he replied, moving towards the jagged edges of the blown out wall. "Keep me updated on the status and pass along a rallying point once we've got one."

"_Yes sir_." Slipping through the multiple walls, he finally floated into the weightlessness of the room and activated the magnets on his boots as he sunk to the burnt floor. Still red hot debris floated through space as the occasional warhead bounced off a wall, threatening a second series of explosions. Looking around the room, Luke spotted the mangled entrance to the airlock and made his way over to it. Sure enough, it was locked and the console was completely fried. Putting his fingers into the center of the door, he put all his strength into separating the door which began to slowly budge as it's seals broke and the atmosphere trapped inside rushed out. After a few seconds of straining he got it wide enough to fit through and squeezed into the airlock. The console on the inside was still operational and so Luke shut the doors again and began the process of sealing the room and pressurizing it. The damage had caused a number of small leaks but the computer was going ahead with the equalization anyways and after about a minute of agonizing progress, the doors finally slid open, depositing Luke into another weapons depot that was full of small missiles that were most likely used in Pelican missile pods. Off in the corner he spotted a small weapons rack that had a single MA5B sitting in it with a spare magazine slotted in beneath the tray. Picking up the rifle, he grabbed the magazine and looked for somewhere to put it but came up empty. Checking one of his magnetic strips on his thigh, it snapped against his right leg and stayed which would have to do.

"_Sword, we have reports of boarding parties near our location_."

"They're not looking for us are they?"

"_No. Supposedly mostly comprised of mostly Jackals with a few Grunts mixed in with the group but they're pillaging or something like that. Seems like their treating Humans as obstacles to their loot rather than hunting everyone down." _With rifle in hand, the ammo counter on his HUD updated to show a silhouette of the rifle and sixty rounds of ammo. Walking out of the ammo depot, he was deposited back into the main set of corridors and brought up a map of the ship to try and get a location for him to head towards. Scanning through it he found the other hangar which was on the opposite side of the ship and judging by the direction of the rest of his squad that was where they were headed. Dropping a waypoint on the hangar, he began to move through the corridors at a slow and methodical pace, not coming across a single soul as he walked past locked door after locked door. Moving up to the corner of a hallway he checked to see if that it was clear and was about to dash across the opening when something stopped him. He could sense there was something heading in his direction and so he decided to stay and wait. Leaning up against the wall, he edged just close enough so that he could down the corridor which was completely empty as it led towards the center of the ship and away from the rear which was where they were at. Despite the perfect sight lines as he looked hundreds of feet down, there was nothing visible but he could still feel something, something alien. It was different than a Human which he took to suggest there was Covenant nearby. Checking his rifle real quick, he prepared for a fight and had to hold back from immediately opening fire as a group of Jackals emerged from a side corridor. The small bird like creatures were dressed in a full spacesuit but must've abandoned their helmets as they moved about the ship. Two of them had their portable shields which was pulsing a blue-green color as they stood in the open, their movements quick and jerky. Remaining frozen, one of them had a small device in it's hand which it was scanning back and forth before finally pointing it in the direction of Luke which caused it to call out loudly as the feathers on the back of it's head and neck snapped up. All of them returned the call and the shield carriers move to the front as they pulled out their small pistols and began to move towards him. Whatever it was that Jackal had gave away his position almost instantly and cost him the element of surprise as they marched towards him. He noticed that the one that had detected him had clipped the small purple device onto it's belt which meant they were hunting him without their little tool and would afford him a little bit of room to maneuver. Sliding away from the wall, he continually tracked them with his mind until they were just beyond the edge of the corner. Spring across the hall, he slammed into the first two of the aliens, knocking one to the ground in a pile while he grabbed the neck of the other and rammed him up against the wall. Following through, Luke put his full weight into the Jackal as he body slammed it, it's chest nearly exploding as blood poured out and organs oozed out of a number of holes in it's torso. Turning his attention to the other three he quickly left off a burst of fire that caught all three but didn't down any of them. In the tight confines he was an absolute terror as he jumped quickly and swung his right leg across the closest Jackal which took it into the head and went flying against the bulkhead, it's skull cracked wide open. The two remaining Jackals dashed away from him and began to fire their weapons frantically at him with most shots going wide but two hit him in the chest, singing his armor. Readying his rifle, he fired off two controlled bursts which took them both down before they could scramble into cover. He went to each one and made sure they were dead with a swift stomp on their spines. Looking at the ammo counter on the rifle it read forty-eight rounds which, combined with the spare magazine, gave him a hundred and eight shots. While it would be more than enough for small skirmishes like the one he had just gone through, if he encountered anything larger than that it would get ugly fast. Moving towards the one that he had kicked against the wall, he grabbed it's weapon and took the small device off of it's belt and examined it for a moment. Touching the small hologram that was projected, a much larger screen appeared and showed a rough diagram of the ship as slow pulses emanated from the device. In the dead center of the display was a small symbol that consisted of two small circles and a number of ornate designs on the inside. Stepping in different directions, the map changed location but the symbol stubbornly remained in the center of the screen. It was an incredible piece of Covenant technology as it seemed to be able to detect and locate him but without anywhere to put it he would have to carry it himself which could be a hindrance. Assuming (and hoping) someone else would come across one of these devices again, he put it in the open and made his way back towards the hangar.

"_Sword? We've got some information for you. The Kamiak is on it's way back from patrol but it won't be here for another few minutes. We've tried to get transport off of the ship but they're trying to put everyone onto Longswords and Pelicans to get them out of here as fast as possible. They're throwing in the towel._" They weren't on a warship but rather a medical ship and Luke figured the ship was in still in one piece because of it's sheer size or the Jackal pirates hadn't put their full force to bear.

"Copy that. I ran into some resistance but I'm on my way there."

"_Wait…wait…we're getting something else from the Kamiak." Luke stayed still in the intersection as he waited for Dagger to get back to him with whatever it was they were relaying him. "Oh shit…Sword, we've got problems. The bridge crew couldn't complete the Cole Protocol. The star charts were purge but the ship's AI is still intact. Ambresio is ordering one of us to complete the Protocol._" Luke didn't wait for Dagger to finish speaking before he had begun running down the main hallway. The moment he heard the Cole Protocol he knew what he'd need to do and wasn't going to let anyone stop him, the location of Earth and the UNSC's one advantage in AI technology was too important to fall into the hands of a bunch of pirates. As he ran down the hallway he kept his eyes focused ahead on the empty corridor which was beginning to fall apart around him. Each hit on the ship rattled it more and more, causing panels to detach and crash to the ground as live wires fell from their mountings and sparked on the metal decking. Lights flickered all around him as some died for good while others managed to survive and came back to life to dimly light the walls around him.

"C'mon gravity…don't fail me," Luke said out loud as he continued to sprint towards the bridge. As long as the artificial gravity remained active he wouldn't have any problem completing the purge but if it died out he figured that he would most likely be trapped inside the ship before he could escape. Checking his motion tracker two red dots appeared in front of him but he blew past the two aliens, their blue skin and orange backpacks standing out against the olive drab of the ship.

"A demon?! He doesn't look like the other Demons!" he heard the two of them chatter through his translator, the electronic sound using their voice patterns to produced the squeaking and panic filled tones. Up ahead, the floor started to tilt upwards and led to a door that was closed shut. With no indication of if it would open or not he continued at his current pace and lowered his shoulder. Thankfully it slid open as he sprinted through into the blinding white hallways of the medical areas of the ship. "I need my stealth working now!" he yelled out, hoping the computer would here him.

"_I am sorry user Sword, the cells must be calibrated at a proper location to prevent improper displays._"

"I don't give a shit. I'm in completely black armor in a completely white interior."

"_It is strongly recommended that, to prevent permanent damage, the proper calibration testing is done before usage._"

"Fuck any testing or calibration, just activate the god damn system!"

"_Yes sir_." Two seconds later he was amazed at the sight of his armor almost completely disappearing. Instead of just making him completely white, the armor matched the color perfectly and projected the small details of the environment onto his armor, including the seams of the panels and the occasional control panel. It wasn't perfect as there seemed to be a slight delay and the projections weren't as crisp as what they were mimicking but it could give him precious seconds if he was ambushed. Bringing up the ship's schematics he saw that he was getting close to bridge and began to slow down. Up ahead the corridor wrapped around a large column that would lead into the bridge. Unable to see anything beyond the column, he walked towards the corner of the wall silently and pressed up against his, leaning around the edge so that he could see if there was anyone waiting for him. Pushing up towards it, he checked again and could get a quick glimpse of the bridge but was unable to see anything but an empty console. Finally sneaking up against the entrance to the bridge he was able to see a contingent of about ten Jackals skulking about the different computers as they pulled out whatever loot they could find. Piled up in the center of the room was the crew, a pool of crimson blood spreading away from them while they were covered in plasma burns and gashes across their bodies and faces. It even looked like one of them had had their throat bitten off but the blood made it hard to see what the actual wound was. The bridge was a in a "T" shape with most of the non-combat stations situated near the rear while the weapons and navigation were up on either side of the captain's seat and had extra space to them. In front and below the captain was the pilot's seat which was suspended over the glass canopy. Most of the Jackals were bunched in the front but three of them were moving about near Luke, their weapons on their belts and their shields deactivated. Sliding back a little bit, he wrapped his knuckles on the walls and hoped one of them would hear it and come investigate. Sure enough he could feel it come closer and his motion tracker backed it up as the red dot moved towards him. He lunged out silently and grabbed the creature's beak and smashed it's head into the wall before dropping it to the floor, a purple splatter trickling off the white wall. Thankfully the others didn't seem to notice and he began to rummage through the Jackal's gear. Grabbing it's plasma pistol, he held it in the same hand as his MA5B while grabbing more things. Two small blue orbs were attached to it's utility belt and he removed them, a small icon glowing over and orange area in the center of it, a Plasma Grenade. Setting them down on the corner, he checked where the Jackals were and saw that they had bunched up near the Captain's chair.

"I _don't mean to hurry you but these creatures seem to have located me. It'd be nice if you would either retrieve me or destroy me, soldier_," a plain male voice said to him over his speaker, a slight accent to his voice.

"Who are you?" he asked.

"_Complete the Cole Protocol, one way or another, soldier_." Grabbing one of the Plasma Grenades, he pressed the orange part down and watched as it became enveloped in blue plasma. Hurling it at the grouping, it caught one of them in the chest as they others panicked. Squawking and scrambling on the metal floor, it was too late for them as the high pitch whine went out and the grenade exploded in a wave of blue plasma that instantly incinerated five of them and blew three others away as different limbs splattered down next to them. Rolling off the corner, Luke put a burst into the remaining stunned Jackal and hurried over to the holo-tank. Still glowing orange from the explosion, he removed the small blue crystal immediately. With nowhere to put the AI, he felt the back of his helmet for the slot and pressed it in as a the feeling of cold mercury washed over his brain.

"Alright…who are you?"

"I am UNSC Shipboard AI NTN-6148-9. You can call me Nathan."

"Ok Nathan. I need a way out of here and fast, this bucket doesn't seem like it'll be able to hold itself together much longer."

"Agreed soldier. If you destroy the bridges canopy, your pilot Bugle should be able to pick you up." Luke didn't like the plan but he didn't see an escape pod anywhere and alarms were beginning to blare loudly as parts of the superstructure began to fail and the ship buckled under it's own weight. "One of those grenades should weaken it sufficiently for your firearm to finish the job."

"I need to call them up and tell them the plan," Luke interjected quickly.

"Noneed soldier, I have already alerted the pilot and they are on their way. You do not have much more time so I would suggest you begin to break it open or else your efforts will have been in vain." Letting an annoyed twitch snap across his face, Luke took the last plasma grenade and primed it as it glowed blue in his hand. Dropping it into the glass bubble in front of him, he ducked down beneath the blasted metal and waited a few seconds as the whine intensified before the explosion went off. He had half expected the atmosphere to vent out afterwards but the canopy was still intact as he got up and looked down at it. A spider web of veins radiated out from the center of the explosion and small puffs of white clouds floated out of the cracks but it was hardly the detonation he was expecting. Glancing down around him, he looked for another grenade but couldn't find one.

"How am I supposed to completely break this glass? There aren't anymore grenades."

"I would suggest using your firearm until Bugle arrives. The weight of the armor should provide enough force to break through but you will have no way of altering your trajectory so the transport must be waiting for you." Standing on the ledge looking over the canopy, Luke emptied the rest of his current clip into the glass as the bullets slammed into it and exploded into shrapnel, the shell casings rolling around him with steam streaming off of them. Each shot fractured the glass more and more but it was remaining stubbornly in place. Locking in the other magazine, he began firing just as a Pelican flew in underneath and centered itself.

"_Hey there, heard you needed some help_," Bugle radioed in, his drawl giving off a perpetually happy tone.

"Affirmative on that, I'm almost out." Emptying the last of the second clip, the entire pane looked as if it was hanging together by a thread. Climbing up onto the captain's console he took a deep breath and prayed it would work. Leaping up into the air, he focused his right elbow down as his body stretched out and floated down. Despite lasting only a second it felt like an eternity as he glided through the air before impacting the glass. Shattering into a thousand pieces, the atmosphere venting out and his momentum thrust him towards the Pelican. He slammed into the top of the craft and felt himself beginning to bounce off but stopped himself as his gloves magnetized and he held himself in place before gaining some stability. "Prep the rear bay, I'm coming in."

"_Gotchya. Let me just get anyone without a pressure suit into the front real quick_." Clawing his way towards the rear of the Pelican, he rolled over the backside and "hung" off the tail boom as he waited for the rear to get cleared out. A few seconds passed before the two doors split apart and he was greeted by the rest of his team. Getting inside, the doors closed again as the compartment pressurized.

"Glad to see you could make it," Dagger said as he extended his hand. Luke clasped it as they shook, Claymore patting him on the back. Katana remained in the back but he made a point of looking at her. "How'd you get that this to work?" Dagger said, motioning to his suit which had taken on the olive drab of the interior of the Pelican.

"Uh…I just told it to do it. Had to argue a little bit though." Dagger laughed a little before stepping away. The door to the cockpit opened up as Dr. Allara walked out looking slightly frazzled. A sudden jolt signaled that Bugle was firing the engines as they got away from the ship before it exploded and on their way towards the Kamiak which was most likely hiding somewhere nearby.

"Do you have the AI?" Allara said as she walked up to him.

"Yes ma'am."

"Well then…congratulations on completing your first mission of the war."


	15. Alpha and Omega

**Part Two: The Great War**

"Alpha and Omega"

"We've lost contact with Sword…he's not responding on any radio channel. It's like he's just completely disappeared." The small apartment was full of communication equipment that was humming away quietly against the back wall while three technicians sat next to old wooden desks with their computers in front of them, scanning the data that was streaming across. One of them had turned in his seat and was looking back at the shadowy figures in the back of the room who were standing silently. On the adjacent wall was a rack of weapons that had been almost completely emptied out by the clean-up team that had been dispatched to take care of the body.

"What do you mean? Is there a communication problem?" one of the figures in the back asked.

"No…I mean…nothing I'm seeing is indicating a communication error," the tech replied back, shaking his head. He just held his hands out in frustration before turning back to his computer.

"_This is Caravan, over_." A quick pop of static cut in before the clean up team reported in.

"What's the status?" the figure asked, stilling remaining in the shadows with the others.

"_No sign of either the target or Sword, sir. Advise?_"

"Pull back, she's not worth the effort anymore, we've got a bigger problem on our hands at the moment."

"Sir, I've got the STARS up, there was a delay in routing the thermal imaging to us. Someone else was grabbing them first but I don't know who…" He trailed off as he tapped something into the computer and turned towards a holo-tank set up awkwardly in an open corner. A few seconds passed before the tank came to life and an image appeared in the air. It was a thermal image of the pier that the assassination was supposed to take place. Two warm bodies moved into the frame and the camera zoomed in, the STARS satellite monitoring the location hovering hundreds of miles up in the sky. For a few seconds it looked as if the kill was about to go don but then Sword began to gesture towards her before turning away and losing himself in the city. Nicole had fallen to her knees for a little bit before getting up and running off into the city like Sword did. "Why didn't he kill her?"

"Where's the audio?" the voice from behind asked.

"I don't know, it's been stripped off the stream somehow."

"Fuck." The room remained silent as the clean up team reentered the apartment and put their rifles away.

"Where do you think he's going?" someone asked. The figure in the back moved forward and moved into the light. "Dagger?" The enormous soldier leaned over the back of the tech's chair and stared at the footage as it continued to loop.

"I think I know where he's heading. She's close enough that he'll go there first."

* * *

"It all came to me…so quickly, like I didn't even need to think as I killed them." A soft blue glow illuminated Luke's hulking shape as he sat slumped over a holographic table that sat idle, it's grid framework waiting patiently for the next mission to be displayed. His helmet sat in the middle of the table while he leaned over the edge, with his right arm supporting the side of his head as he stared off into the distance. The room he was in was rather small but it had a few sets of tiered seating for the officers to attend the briefings that were held in there. Earlier, Captain Ambresio had held a debriefing of the assault on the medical ship, the _UNSC Regrowth, _where it was determined that the attack couldn't have been prevented because it appeared to be a situation where the odds of a Covenant ship and a Human ship meeting up in space finally caught up to them. Thankfully because the _Regrowth_ was shadowing a roving patrolling UNSC fleet and not stationed over a planet, the casualties of the attack would be limited to those who were on board at the time. The debriefing had happened over an hour ago and Luke was still in the room, Dr. Allara sitting in one of the benches near the top of the room.

"Well that's how we designed you and the other Tempests. Killing is supposed to be your second nature." He hadn't spoken much since the meeting but he was happy that the doctor didn't seem to have any problems sitting there with him. He wasn't having regrets about killing the Jackals, Luke was glad that they would be unable to kill more Humans and he would gladly sacrifice himself to kill a thousand more. But something had crawled into the pit of his stomach and he was seeing things differently. He had looked at his gloves a hundred times since coming aboard, the odd purple blood stained into the material after killing them in hand to hand combat.

"What's our next mission going to be?"

"I'm not sure. My involvement with the project is coming to an end very soon and you'll be placed under the command of ONI NavSpecWar. Most likely the Beta-5 Division."

"What do they do?" he asked, interested in who he'd be working for.

"They're the people who figured out artificial gravity, the shielding technology you use as well as the camouflage. If you ask me…they're the ones who will win the war, especially with you and the Spartans fighting."

"I'd like to meet a Spartan someday…we seem to have a lot in common." His tone was almost childish as he thought out loud.

"Oh, you two are similar in some ways but you'd be surprised at the differences. They survive by sheer brute force. By killing anything and everything that gets in their way and overpowering the enemy. The four of you fight differently, we wanted you to be everywhere and nowhere. To complete your missions without the enemy even knowing you were there. So yes…while your augmentations and suits are similar, you'll probably find that the two groups are very different in every other way."

"I must say soldier, you fight like no one I've seen before." Nathan appeared near the middle of the table, his image extending up into the air as the grid pattern sloughed off of him revealing a handsome young man. Each AI made it's own appearance and Nathan had settled on the appearance of a young man dressed in a sharp suit sans tie and richly styled hair. He didn't have any color to him, instead using the default ghostly blue that most of the UNSC's technologies used. "Seeing as I no longer have a ship to control I'd rather like to assist you." He turned to Allara, hands behind his back and seemed to plead with his eyes that she agree.

"An AI?"

"Yeah…your suit is capable of housing an AI of Nathan's caliber for combat purposes. I'd assumed you be given something when we arrived at Section Three but it almost assuredly wouldn't have been something anything like him, probably a dumb AI used for basic communication monitoring and hacking. But I'll put in a request to have you assigned to him seeing as Nathan is technically UNSC property and incredibly valuable to boot." Allara shifted in her seat before standing up, Luke still leaning over the table. The _Kamiak_ was beginning to make it's requisite random jumps before beginning to make it's way towards Earth and the Doctor would need to be prepped for cryogenic freezing. She would need to strip down to prevent clothing from creating a sort of freezer burn on her skin as well as swallow a disgusting chemical cocktail to help prevent tissue damage as well as provide a solid supply of nutrients. Luke, on the other hand, had to merely step into the tube and let the cold take him. Just as Allara was about to leave the room, he asked her one final question. Despite the anger that he still felt for what the Lieutenant had done during their training exercises, something that was unforgivable in Luke's mind, he was still an elite soldier in the UNSC.

"Ma'am…what happened to Lieutenant June?" She stopped when he asked this and remained still for a few seconds, her shoulders suddenly looking like they were carrying a thousand pounds, her head hanging a little low.

"It looks like he didn't make it. Not many escape pods made it off the ship and I haven't heard anything about him being on one of them. It's likely he went down with the ship." Finished, she opened the door and left the room to Luke as Nathan stood at attention in the table, reflected in the mirror of his helmet's visor.

A thick cloud of swirling white mist obscured Luke's vision as his suit's HUD powered back on and the grid appeared on screen for a few seconds before fading away. The drowsiness of the cryo-sleep was still tugging at him but he forced himself to wake up and shaking out the stiffness and ignoring the pain of his suit thawing off of his skin while he waited for the casing to be released. There was a soft rapping on the glass as the seal broke and the mist floated away.

"Sir, we've arrived at Earth." The tech was gone a split second later as he made his way down the line of cryo-chambers, waking everyone up from their cold induced sleep. With the door fully open, Luke braced himself on the sides of the tube and pushed himself up out the cushioning. His muscles were stiff and achy but quickly flexing his muscles and stretching out relieved most of the aches which woke him up completely. Around him, the crew members were stumbling out of the chambers nude, awkwardly reaching for their uniforms as they tried to wake up, some of them taking a moment to vomit up the bronchial surfactant that Ambresio had insisted they ingest in case they encountered Covenant during one of the random jumps and were forced to eject any pods. The rest of Luke's team had been woken up as well and were following his lead in stretching and working their joints to get the chemicals out of them as well as getting blood flowing throughout their bodies again.

"That was fun," Dagger commented sarcastically over his external speakers, his voice slightly deeper as it was filtered out.

"Just imagine if you'd have to do that in an emergency with the Covenant breathing down our necks. The crew would still be stumbling to their stations by the time we were cut in half," Claymore commented.

"No…there's no reason they need to be quick right now. Earth is probably the one safe place we have at the moment," Luke said, ending the argument. He really wasn't sure what his team was supposed to be doing so they remained outside of their tubes as the crew slowly filed out to their stations, leaving them completely alone. It didn't take long before Luke received a radio ping from the bridge.

"_Sir, Captain Ambresio has requested you join him on bridge. Your squad can wait for you in hangar bay two._" Luke quickly relayed the order to his squad and split off from them as he made his way through the ship towards the bridge at the very top of the _Kamiak_. Finally climbing up a few flights of stairs he reached a relatively long hallway which had two Marines standing straight as boards in front of the open hatch with their MA5Bs at the ready.

"Officer on deck!" one of them called out as he stepped into the bridge and the deck crew snapped to attention in their seats as he made his way towards the Captain who was standing in front of a holographic display that was projecting up from the small divider between him and the navigators. Ambresio was talking to an older man, his long face etched with deep wrinkles around his mouth which curved outwards to accommodate his slight jowls and pronounced chin. A white cover sat on top of his bald head that cast a small shadow on his face from the light that was obviously above him, the four bars on either side of his gray collar glistening whenever he moved. Although Luke was unsure of who the man was, he saw the rank and instantly snapped to attention which caused the man to shift his tired but fierce eyes towards him.

"If I didn't know any better, Captain, I would've thought he was one of One-One-Seven's."

"No sir, this the Tempest team leader, Sword." For a few seconds he examined Luke through the screen before pursing his lips and nodding in approval.

"I look forward to meeting them in person eventually. We'll speak at a later time Captain Ambresio."

"Yes Lord Hood, _Kamiak_ out." The feed went dead and was replaced by the UNSC logo floating on a blue background before Ambresio turned it off and turned to face Sword who saluted sharply. "Welcome to Earth," he replied with a quick salute in return.

"Thank-you sir. I've never been before."

"I know. I suggest you get a good look at her during our stay here, just so you know what we're fighting for out there."

"With all due respect I didn't need to see Earth to want to fight the Covenant but I will take your advice, sir," Luke remained at attention as the _Kamiak_ flew towards the blue orb off in the distance. From his basic knowledge of the Sol system, particularly Earth and Luna, Luke guessed they had jumped somewhere inside the moon's orbit and were making their way towards the planet for orbit, the star shining brightly in the background.

"Good to know. The Kamiak is going to be stationed here for a few weeks to get some modifications done to it's stealth plating as well as some other modifications specifically for the four of you. Most of the crew will be given planetside leave time but the four of you won't be afforded that luxury. Most of the time you'll be spending your time Beta-5 going over whatever it is they have planned for you. But we'll most likely be staying for a few days longer than that'll take so I'll see what I can do about letting you guys get a last minute break before we head back out."

"Thank you, sir."

"One more thing, Sword. Dr. Allara mentioned that you inquired about Lieutenant June and the _Regrowth_. We've checked our information a hundred times and we know that he didn't make it off the ship alive." Luke didn't say anything but gave a short nod of his head. "Bugle is waiting for you in hangar one." Continuing his journey through the _Kamiak, _Luke made his way down to hangar bay one which was beginning to buzz with activity. Compared to the Regrowth the hangar was relatively small, only large enough to house four Pelicans side by side but it was two stories tall which allowed for the ship to muster and launch a large number of troops in unison. At the moment, there were two Pelicans parked in the two and four slots but the sound of cranes and servos whining seemed to suggest more were beginning to get ready for launch. Lima Eight-Three-Six was parked at number two slot and the rest of his team and Bugle were standing at the back idly. Claymore noticed him first which caused them to break up from their little group and stand a little more formal, Bugle flicking his wrist off of his forehead in a lazy salute. Luke was still not used to his rank he was glad Bugle didn't seem to too interested in the formalities.

"Sorry for the delay. The Captain just wanted to give me a heads up about what we're going to be doing in the system."

"Oh?" Dagger asked.

"Work. While Bugle here gets to party it up with all the local girls in Sydney we have to hang out with a bunch of spooks the whole time."

"Isn't that the truth!" Bugle said before laughing heartily. "I've got my bags packed and sitting in the jumpsuit!"

"Really?" Luke asked, amused that his joke was becoming a reality.

"Hell yeah! I'm on call for the four of you but whenever I'm not flying ya'll around I get to do whatever I want. You won't _believe _what goes on in those bars near HIGHCOM. I mean…even the top brass need to let off some steam every once and a while." Leading the way, Bugle walked into the back of his ship and then up to the cockpit, leaving the cabin door open as Team Hurricane got into their seats. The rear door closed quickly as the Pelican rumbled to life and lifted off the deck before heading out towards FLEETCOM in Sydney, Australia.

* * *

The Pacific Ocean was a deep blue beneath the Pelican as it flew over the water, the sunlight shining brightly off the tops of waves as they made their way inland. Standing in the rear of the Pelican, Luke watched the water fly past them as the Pelican made it's way towards Sydney. Having celebrated a new year just a few weeks earlier, the calendars switching over to 2549, Australia and the rest of the southern hemisphere were in the middle of Summer and the heat could be felt swirling around inside the cabin. There was a change in the water that happened gradually as the deep blue was replaced with almost crystal clear water that came crashing into bright white beaches that were filled with people enjoying the day. Luke couldn't help but remember the warm summer days back on Aracito when they would stop up all night hanging out with family and friends, listening to the sounds of the forests near their house which mixed in with the JOTUNs harvesting the crops. As painful as it was he had to push those memories out of his head and focus on the present so that he could fight for the future. Roaring over them, the Pelican turned north as it began to fly over the farthest edges of the UNSC High Command compound that encompassed Bondi Bay north to South Head and as far east as Bellevue Hill. The buildings closest to the edges were small cement structures with plenty of parking spots but as they came closer tall black glass buildings rose up into the sky until it centered on a single enormous tower near the shore. Around it was a large complex of landing zones which were buzzing with activity as ships came and went. Bugle, however, ignored this grouping and instead flew to the front of the building where there was a single pad that looked out over the Southern Pacific Ocean, white thunderheads building up on the horizon. They quickly came to a landing as the ground crew crept up from the sides of the landing pads with fuel lines and blocks for the tires.

"Welcome to Australia," Luke said as he walked out of the back of the Pelican and onto the landing pad. He was hit with a blast of heat from the hot summer day and was thankful that he had as suit after it quickly adjusted it's internal temperature to compensate for the nearly blistering heat. Glancing over towards the enormous building, he watched as a single man come walking across the catwalk towards them. He was of average height but had a large physique that was pushing against the seams of his fatigues.

"Lieutenant Sword? You and your team can come with me," he said once he got close, immediately turning back around towards the building. A few beads of sweat were slowly making their way down the man's head as they dodged the short black hair before slipping across his bronzed skin, surely a by-product of the Australian sun. Walking through the single black glass door they arrived in an enclosed room that housed a number of elevators that were waiting for someone to enter. Passing by three on the left side, the man walked into the fourth and pulled out a keycard that he swiped across a small screen by the menu which changed to an ONI set-up. Typing in a long numeric code, it changed again as he pressed his palm onto the glass plate while it was scanned and his biometrics were read.

"Sure is a lot of security for wherever we're going," Luke remarked.

"We're heading to the Hive. Only a fool would think that the UNSC's top brass sits in these buildings just waiting to get vaporized in the first wave of plasma bombardment. The Hive is a compound built deep beneath the surface and is capable of withstanding a number of large explosions before its integrity is compromised. When hell comes knocking, this is probably the safest place you could be." After a few more security checks as he was speaking, he brought up a list of locations and tapped on Beta-5 which immediately sent the elevator hurtling downwards. A soft hum filled the capsule as it continued it's descent, soft tones homing every few seconds as they went past more and more subterranean levels that weren't officially part of the Hive. They continued to ride in silence as the elevator injected itself into the Hive before finally arriving on one of the level assigned to Beta-5. The doors of the elevator opened almost silently before a dull thud sounded when they locked into place. Stretching out in front of them was an enormous server farm that was being housed inside a clean room. The same white metal that was in the interior of the _Regrowth_ was being used here to prevent dust and other particulates from getting into the servers and potentially causing problems with the hardware. Despite the size of the room, the hallway that they were about to walk down was relatively small due to a set of parallel glass panels in the center of the room. "The director wanted me to show you this before we met with him."

"What is it?" Luke asked as they walked down the hallway, a tech in all cotton clean suit appearing as he checked the servers behind the glass.

"Well, technically it's plural so the proper question is actually 'what are they'?" Luke glanced over at the man with a confused look on his face but there was no way he would've known Luke was completely lost behind his facemask. As they got near the end of the hallway, the door opened up to reveal a dark room that was built around a rather large holographic table that was sitting idle, it's grid the only thing glowing a soft blue.

"This is quite a set-up you've got," Luke remarked a little dryly as the man walked up to the table and placed his hand on it to bring it back to life.

"Just need to wake them up, that's all." Like Nathan when they were on the _Kamiak, _two figures rose up out of the grid and stood on the table before spreading apart as projectors mounted along the darkened walls began to display them in open space.

"Hello, my name is Alpha."

"And I'm Omega. We are the most advanced AI the UNSC has ever produced."

"We posses more computing power than all of the smart AIs in service at the moment. The server banks in the room behind you house us," Alpha said as he floated in the room, focusing on Luke who had taken a few steps closer to his hologram.

"What do you do?" he asked Alpha.

"We learn," Omega replied from the other side of the room. "Every communiqué that is transmitted, every battle report, every ship maneuver, every jump vector. Anything that happens within UNSC controlled space we know about."

"We have a number of missions that we believe will be able to bring an end to the war, or at least severely cripple the Covenant," Alpha said while finishing Omega's train of thought. Luke looked over at the man leading them around, unsure of what he was hearing. He seemed to sense this and clarified what the AIs were speaking about.

"They're purely theoretical at this point in time. We're making assumptions on Covenant command structure at the moment and what effect a loss of one of their leaders, a Prophet, would have on them as a whole. This isn't why you're here though, at least not at first," he said before stopping to let the AIs continue their explanation.

"Despite the Covenant's desire to destroy all of Humanity, there are some factions that do not wish to unite under Earth's banner to fight the Covenant. These Insurrectionists are beginning to take advantage of the weakness in the UNSC's strength and influence and have ratcheted up the number of attacks on our fleets and facilities." Alpha shifted after he finished speaking, as if he was getting comfortable.

"By tracing their outbound Slipspace trajectories, tracing communication traffic and estimating range on their ships we believe we have located a Separatist stronghold in the Karol Asteroid Cluster," Omega finished. "Destroying this base would deal a severe blow to the Separatist movement and protect UNSC supply lines from unneeded threats." This wasn't the mission that Luke was expecting and he could sense the frustration in the rest of his squad at the news. He'd been training to fight and kill the Covenant and his first mission would be against a bunch of cowardly Humans.

**A/N: I just wanted to point this out to everyone reading, I plan on having the story split into three distinct sections and this is the second part. There's nothing fundamentally different about them, just view them as major points in the characters' lives.**

**I also wanted to point out that I'd really appreciate your comments on what you're reading, good or bad. Most of my chapters are written ahead of time but I do look over them before uplading for errors/mistakes and if people are noticing problems I can fix them there. Thanks!**


	16. A Short Goodbye

"A Short Goodbye"

The office that Team Hurricane had been ushered into was rather stale when compared to those of similar stature but judging by the emptiness of the room Luke didn't really think that the director of Beta-5 spent much time in it in the first place. In the center rear of the room was a clear glass table that was supported by brushed aluminum rods that seemed to be bolted directly into the soft blue carpeting that filled the room. A matching pair of dark blue chairs sat on the other side of the desk which had a large black computer chair sitting behind it. A number of cabinets sat up against the lonely metal walls which only had a few pictures of different officers and awards. The most impressive part of the room was actually behind the desk where the entire wall was acting as a hologram. It appeared as a window that overlooked rolling green hills where the grass was swaying gently in a breeze as a crystal clear stream cut through the field and wound off into the horizon. Mountains sat off in the distance behind a haze as puffy white clouds floated lazily in the cerulean sky. It was quite likely that most of the ONI operatives spent a large amount of time within The Hive and this simple allusion probably went a long way to keeping their sanity intact.

"Apologies for my delay," someone said from behind them which immediately caused all four Tempests to snap to attention as an older man walked briskly past them and sat down at his desk. Seemingly in his late fifties or early sixties, his hair had gone almost completely grey with a few streaks of black hair still fighting to survive. Deep lines cut around his mouth and his forehead which contrasted with his numerous scars that jumped across his face at odd angles. "If you haven't been told already I'm Rear Admiral Guthridge, Director of Beta-5 division under ONI Section Three. I was actually one of those who gave the go-ahead for your project, if that means anything to you." Luke shifted almost imperceptibly when he said this. This was the second person outside of Dr. Allara who had claimed involvement in Project TEMPEST and despite his love of it and what he was fighting for it was still a little uncomfortable for him to confronting someone who had condemned him to service in the UNSC for the rest of his life. He quickly pushed those thoughts out of his mind and listened as the Admiral began to speak again. "You've also already met Alpha and Omega. Amazing pieces of equipment really, they've probably helped keep losses to a minimum in many battles, not to mention the work they're doing in mapping the Covenant's supply lines and their command structure."

"Yes sir, I've never seen anything like it," Luke said after the Admiral paused, obviously fishing for a reply.

"You know…I'm just going to cut through the bullshit," he said abruptly before he stood up and leaned forward on his knuckles on the desk. "These Insurrectionist ass wipes are giving the UNSC brass a headache and we want them gone. Our supply lines are already dangerously unprotected from Covenant and Jackal pirate attacks and every time one of our ships gets raided that's precious ammo and equipment that isn't being used to fight the Covenant. I'm sure you're itching to fight the Covenant and I don't blame you but we need someone to take them out. Unfortunately Grey Team is already conducting counter-separatist operations in another system and the other Spartan-IIs are busy in combat. I would send the Spartan-IIIs but we don't have any who are combat ready." Ignoring the sudden deluge of information that Luke assumed was highly confidential he stayed focused on what Guthridge was saying.

"Yes sir. Anything we can do to help the UNSC is our priority." The Admiral reacted oddly to what Luke said and he quickly found out why.

"There's no 'we' in this mission. I know the four of you have trained together as a team we need to keep your footprint as small as possible for a few reasons. Our insertion method doesn't allow for the entire team to come along and on top of that we can't risk losing the entire team to a single mission. So you'll be the only one going, Sword." In Luke's mind the situation had just gone from bad to worse. For the first time he'd be separated from his team to complete any sort of mission, be it training or active duty.

"Sir, if I may…why are we all here then?"

"Cover story. There are a few leaks in HIGHCOM and even some in Section Three so by bringing the team here and sending you off on your own the chances of getting discovered are minimal. Right now, just the Twins and I know the exact details of the operation," he replied, referring to Alpha and Omega.

"And that's why the _Kamiak_ is being stationed at the _Sydney Station_ for time being?"

"Yes and no. The _Kamiak_ does need some work done on it but it won't be full five weeks that it's slotted to be there. We wanted to make sure you had ample time to get to the asteroid belt and back without tipping anyone off." Behind his mask, Luke clenched his teeth but didn't allow anything to show in his body language as he remained stationary in Guthridge's office. But even as he stood there, the excitement and desire to get out into the field was beginning to creep into Luke's mind and he couldn't help but think it would be something that he was looking forward to. "You'll be leaving in a few hours but there's one last thing that you and your team will need to do before you ship out. Because of the specialized nature of most of your missions you'll be equipped with some specialized equipment. We've got a small armory down here that will show you what we'll be giving you but the _Kamiak_ will have a much larger selection for you. Mr. Pirelli will take you down there and explain everything to you. Sword, we'll speak before you leave."

Pirelli ended up being the man that had been leading them around the complex earlier and he continued to do this as he led them through a series of hallways into a heavily secured room. Lights automatically came on as they walked in, illuminating a number of racks on the opposite side of the room where a number of weapons were housed. They were led to the first rack which housed a slightly different looking Battle Rifle then they had trained with, the biggest differences coming in it's overall size and the extended barrel.

"This is the BR55HB-SR. It features a number of upgrades over the current BR55 but it's still undergoing some testing so it'll probably be a year or two before it's in service. I'll assume you have proficient use with the weapon and just explain some of the differences. Your models feature multiple firing modes which are single, burst, and full auto. A laser designator has been fixed to the right side of the handgrip and the barrel has been modified to allow for suppressors. There's also an under slung grenade launcher that can fire multiple types of ammunition." The next rifle also had a BR55 in it but it was radically different than the version they had just seen. "This is the BR55-SAW variant. It is designed to accept a drum magazine but can still take normal BR55 magazines if the situation calls for it. It has a higher rate of fire and replaces the ACOG scope for a red dot sight. The internals have been reinforced and the weight as been redistributed to account for the weight of the magazine."

"That looks like your type of gun, Claymore," Dagger said as he leaned in to look at the black weapon. It featured the laser designator as well but the threaded barrel had been dropped in favor of an extendable tripod that was fixed to the front.

"Moving on, we have the M6E pistol. Similar to the M6C it does not have a scope or laser sight. It's main feature is the automatic fire mode which lets it operate as a sub-machinegun if needed. It uses an extended clip to compensate for the rate of fire." The pistols sat nestled in soft foam padding, their black polymer finish helping them to blend into their surroundings. "This here is the M7S SMG, it has a permanently attached silencer and red dot scope." Scooting in front of Pirelli was Katana who seemed to have been drawn to the Sniper Rifle that was next up on the list. "That's the SRS99C-SC2 AMB. It has an upgraded scope and has been modified to accept multiple ammunition types depending on the situation, namely explosive sabot rounds."

"This is an impressive arsenal," Luke said as he picked up the BR55 and felt it in his hands.

"You haven't seen the coolest part yet," Pirelli said as he walked over to Luke and looked on the gun for something. Finally, just above the firing mode selector he clicked a small black button and stepped back. About a second later the rifle almost completely disappeared in his hands, leaving a small distortion in the air. "What's the point of having camo if all your gear is still there?" he asked rhetorically.

"Oh my god!" Dagger called out when he saw this, taking a single bounding leap towards Luke before leaning in close to get a good look from different angles. Claymore and Katana followed suit as they slowly moved over towards him and examined the nearly invisible weapon.

"Definitely some of the most impressive technology we've got at the moment. It'll react automatically to your suit engaging the camouflaging so there's no need to flick the switch yourself unless you're outside the armor."

"If you come across whoever designed this, please tell them thank-you," Luke said sincerely as he made the rifle reappear and put it back into it's case.

"_Lieutenant Sword, you have been summoned to the command room_," one of the Twins said over the intercom system a split second before a waypoint marker appeared on his HUD. He hesitated for a second, worried that he wouldn't be able to see his squad after this but he didn't have time for an extended series of good-byes so he just nodded to the three of them and made his way towards the waypoint. It wasn't hard to find as he made his way through the bright corridors where markers on the floor and walls led him to his target. Walking inside he was taken aback by the size of the holographic display in the center of the room. Sitting a few steps below the main level was the enormous table which was projecting an asteroid belt up into the air. Around the edges of the room were a few stern-faced officers who hardly recognized Luke as he stepped inside and waited for some sort of clue about where to go. Down near the table was Admiral Guthridge who was flanked by Alpha and Omega who turned to face the soldier as he entered, prompting the Admiral to wave him towards him.

"Now that you're here we'll get down to business. This here is Captain Dell and a few other ONI officers who are involved. Once this meeting is over we need to move quickly to avoid any leaks of this reaching the Insurrectionists."

"Understood, sir," Luke replied as he took his spot at the table across from Guthridge, a band of asteroids obstructing their view of one another.

"This is the Kendreth Asteroid Field, located near the boundary between the Inner and Outer colonies. During the colonization days, the Kendreth Station was a bustling resupply point but outbound ships but it died pretty quickly once colonies were outside of it's range. For the most part it was abandoned until a few years ago when the Separatists moved in there for protection, hoping the Covenant would pass them by as they worked their way towards Earth." The map changed as Guthridge spoke, zooming into a cluster of large asteroids which were arranged in a triangle by crisscrossing conduits with a single structure suspended in the center which seemed to be the hangars and docks for the ships.

"How is that thing still even operating?" Captain Dell asked, the relatively young man stepping forward from the side of the room and towards the hologram.

"Don't know. Seems like somebody forgot to shut the damn thing down when they left and the Separatists moved in and set up shop. Either way it doesn't matter why it's still working because it'll be gone once we're through with it. Initial scans indicate they have very little in the terms of defense aside from the ships that they have docked there. Essentially pleasure craft with makeshift weapons bolted onto the hulls. To insert Sword, we've created a stealthed HEV pod that has been modified for the mission. When the _Argos _enters the system, the pod will be launched slowly towards the station. Once you've been inserted into the station you'll plant a modified Fury Tactical Nuke into the main hub which will destabilize the rest of the station. The _Argos_ will stay on station and clean up any survivors before departing. Any questions?" Looking around the room, Guthridge was met with blank faces who understood exactly what their mission was. "Good. You'll all have a detailed plan once you've departed. Dismissed." Everyone saluted sharply and dispersed, heading off to keep themselves busy until they were ready to head out. Before Luke was able to leave the room, he was stopped by Guthridge.

"Sir?"Luke said, turning around as the hologram flickered off and the Twins wandered away.

"Dr. Allara sent me an e-mail earlier asking me a pretty big favor." The Admiral didn't expand as he took a few steps towards Luke while his wrinkled hand fished around in his pant pocket. Luke knew what it was that he was referring to and held his tongue. "Smart AIs aren't given out lightly, especially considering the threat posed if one of them fell into the hands of the enemy. The only reason Nathan was on that ship in the first place was because he was going to be transferred to a different ship but it was too dangerous to transmit his data over the wires." He extended his hand which was holding a small chip that glowed a soft blue. Luke gingerly removed the crystal from his palm and slotted it into his helmet as a wave of cold liquid flushed his brain before subsiding. Guthridge continued to extend his hand for a handshake and Luke clasped his weathered hands, careful not to squeeze to tight.

"Thank you, sir."

"Make us proud son. Be proud of what you're doing, a victory is a victory regardless of how it's achieved or who it's against. Always remember that."

* * *

Standing in the hangar inside the Hive as it remained relatively dormant were the Tempests and Captain Dell with an assistant, the night bringing an end to most local flights while the occasional Pelican landed from out of system ships that had just arrived in Sol, unloading it's tired load who walked off without much fanfare. Admiral Guthridge had joined them to wave them off before the Pelican made it's way to the _Argos_ which was stationed somewhere above. Luke was holding a rucksack at his side that held a load bearing vest, backpack, and an assortment of other holsters while he had a number of weapons attached to him. Locked onto his right thigh was one of the SMGs which was paired up with the handgun on his left thigh, both attached magnetically. Situated vertically on his back on the right side was his Battle Rifle which was within perfect reach of his arm if he needed to pull it out in an emergency. Without ammo the weapons were much lighter than usual but that load would increasing enormously once he was onboard the ship and headed to the Kendreth. Sitting carefully on the ground next to the bag was his helmet, Nathan inside grumbling the entire time when Luke took the helmet off and set it down. As the engines of the Pelican began to spool up, Luke glanced up the enormous tunnel that was overhead, the multiple blast doors and dummy building that shielded the entrance opened so that they could depart.

"Good luck," Dagger said as he stepped forward and extended his hand. Luke looked away from the night sky that was just barely visible due to the soft lights around the edges and clasped their hands together before grabbing Dagger's forearm with his left.

"Thanks. Make sure you guys stay on top of everything when I'm away, this isn't some vacation," Luke replied with a little sarcasm in his voice. Dagger smiled and nodded before they let go. Claymore was next in line and just slapped Luke on the shoulder as shifted over towards him.

"Give 'em hell brother." Katana was last and Luke felt a slight apprehension about how to say good-bye. When he stepped up to her, it took a second before she looked him in the eye which was when he saw a slight twinkle that faded. He moved in with his left arm out and wrapped it around her shoulder before pulling her in slightly but releasing quickly, not wanting to show anything other than a concern for her well-being. Unseen to the Admiral, she gave him a quick kiss on the cheek as she pulled away which caught him a little off guard and flushed his face.

"Sword, ready to go?" Guthridge asked as he stepped forward towards him, motioning towards the Pelican.

"Yes sir," he replied, moving over to his bags and picking up his helmet first and sliding it on. The seals hissed and popped as he got the rest of his gear and he made his way towards the transport. He felt a small prick in the base of his skull as the helmet reconnected with his implants and the familiar feeling of Nathan using his brain as storage space.

"_Welcome back. I thought you were going to leave me there for good,_" he quipped, his accent making it even more entertaining.

"There? No…I'll make sure I leave you somewhere people can't find you." Despite only being paired up for a short amount of time, Luke could already feel a bond forming between Nathan and himself which would be comforting on the mission without any back-up. As the Admiral and Luke reached the Pelican he took his arm and turned him around.

"Son, do your best on this mission and we'll get you out fighting the Covenant as soon as possible. Do us proud, we're counting on you." Luke nodded in agreement before walking up the rear of the Pelican and stowing his bag away in the hanging basket in the center of the craft. He grabbed onto a railing overhead and stood silently as the door slowly closed and his view of his squad disappeared behind the metal plating.


	17. The Kendreth Station

"The Kendreth Station"

The loneliness and oppressiveness of space was not something Luke had prepared himself for as he remained motionless in his metal coffin. There was no life-support system, just a handful of air canisters that were pumping oxygen into his suit so that in case of an emergency he'd still have his 90 minute back up reserve. Without oxygen surrounding him the minute shifts he made to get comfortable were awkwardly silent as metal contacted metal. The only source of light came from the two halogen lamps on either side of his visor which were only able to shoot two blinding beams of white light onto the dark gray metal that was mere inches from his face. Pushing up against him was all of the gear that he was carrying, mostly a collection a weapons and ammo that would be tossed into his vest and backpack once the pod had landed. The one source of worry was the football sized object that was being stored between his feet. A modified FURY Tactical Nuke, it was best described as a nuclear grenade that was commonly used to destroy large troop clusters without producing a large amount of fallout. In this case the nuke had been stripped down to it's bare essentials to save space and weight. Once inside the Kendreth station he would be placing it near the reactor and creating a cascade of explosions to multiply it's yield and destroy the station. The hope was also to have the increased yield damage or destroy the attached asteroids so that they were inhabitable in case the Insurrectionists tried to return and use the base at a later date.

"_I hope I'm not prying too deeply but what is the relationship between you and the Tempest known as Katana?_" Nathan asked, finally breaking the silence. The question caught Luke off-guard but he was still glad to hear someone speaking to him after such a long silence.

"There was something…but that's all behind me now." He hesitated for a second before adding, "Whatever feelings I had for her are gone now…" It hurt to lie but he had to convince himself that it was true, knowing that his mission was to destroy the Separatist base and kill any survivors and that after this mission was completed he would have another. There was no room for him to let his emotions get the better of him and expressing them with Katana would be a distraction he couldn't afford.

"_Quite impressive that you are able to do that, Soldier. Most of my observations suggest that many soldiers let their emotions get the better of the during stressful situations yet you are able to ignore them._"

"This job doesn't let me have emotions. All I need to think about is how to best complete my mission and keep my squad alive," it was a cold-hearted look at his existence but it wasn't all together inaccurate either.

"_It will be quite a treat to watch you in combat, again_," Nathan added after a few seconds.

"Well it'll be nice to have you by my side. You can't beat having a pair of eyes in the back of your head."

"_I'd like to think I'm a little more than just a pair of eyes in the back of your head, Soldier._" Despite the quick conversation with Nathan, the distraction was short lived and he was brutally yanked back into reality as he tried to shift slightly within the coffin, his mission timer slowly ticking down to it's zero hour before beginning it's slow descent upwards as the mission progressed. For the millionth time he went over his initial moves once the pod landed, committing everything to muscle memory because it would be the most dangerous part of the mission where the likelihood of being spotted by a nearby ship was at it's greatest. He contemplated possibly just tossing everything into the bag and then taking a moment after he was inside to get it all organized but he decided against it. If something happened on his way in he'd be at a disadvantage if nothing was easily useable. For some reason a song worked it's way into his head and he began to whisper the lyrics.

"Careful…be careful…careful…be careful…this is where the world drops off…where the world drops off…"

"_I'm sorry?_" Nathan asked, the whispers easily audible to the AI.

"Oh…nothing, just something that came to me while I was thinking," he replied quickly. Flicking off the halogen lamps on his helmet, Luke took a few breaths and settled in for the rest of the ride towards the station.

* * *

"Breach the seals Nathan!" Luke called out as the casket shook and then stopped moving, a few pinpricks of light piercing through small holes that formed as the casing deformed from the small impact. A series of small flashes lit up along the sides and pushed the lid off in a small cloud of smoke that floated lazily into the silence of space. Blinking at the bright light that flooded into his eyes from the star, Luke took a moment to scan his surroundings before getting to work. Off in the distance was a golden star flooding the area with a soft orange glow, partially obscured by the asteroid field. All around him, brown and black rocks that were pockmarked from small impacts rolled end over end as they orbited the star in the center of the system. Luke thought he was able to see a small planet on the inside of the field but it's gray surface and black clouds seemed to suggest that it was far from habitable which led to the construction of the Kendreth Station. The asteroid he was on was a dark brown color and was relatively smooth compared to the rest of the rocks in the area although it could've been due to some earlier work during construction. All over it's surface were different antennas ranging from small single bands to a few enormous clusters that could probably pump out a strong enough signal to reach nearby systems. Down spin was a large metallic arm that extended out towards a tiered structure in the center of the three asteroids. The "top" point was the largest and had a number of openings for ships to land while also sporting umbilical lines to service the larger ships, three of them being used at the moment. Further down, it got smaller and smaller before arriving at a point where another cluster of transmitters sat silently.

With his bearings and the moment of vertigo passing, Luke immediately set about getting his gear together as he pulled at the black bags that had been packed around them. Grabbing the load bearing vest he put it on and quickly attached the backpack with clips on his shoulders and down near his ribs. Grabbing a handful of magazines, he slotted them into their respective spaces until all of them were full. The rest of the ammo was placed into the backpack along with the FURY. A few fragmentation grenades were hooked onto the left side of his belt along with some cylindrical flashbangs on the right side. His pistol was put into his thigh holster on his right side while the SMG was magnetically attached to his left. The shotgun locked into place on the left side of his back piece, while the right side remained empty for the BR55 which he was holding. Satisfied he'd gotten everything, he activated his camouflage and disappeared before kicking the pod off the asteroid. It was a disconcerting feeling, looking at your body disappear in front of you, just a minute distortion in the air indicating where his body was and where space was. Slinking down the rock he located an access hatch which was open on the outside but seemingly inoperable as all of the lights and panels on the inside were dead. Just barely large enough to fit his body into, he crammed into the dark space and flicked his lights on which cast light onto the tired metal at weird angles.

"Nathan, have you gotten into their system yet?"

"_I am almost finished, they're systems are quite compartmentalized which seems to suggest they have jerry rigged their own networks into the existing framework._"

"When you're in, please activate this seal and let me inside," Luke said, turning his lamps off and turning out to look back into space, bracing himself from further movement by putting his arms out and locking his body into place. With one eye on his motion tracker he stared out into space and began to admire the view until his eye glimpsed some flickering in the blackness. Looking at the source, a number of sparks crackled and popped out in an empty part of the asteroid field near the outer edge before they suddenly erupted into a bright flash of white light as sleek ship pushed through the hole which quickly disappeared once it exited.

"_I am inside their system now. A new contact has jumped in-system and is displaying a known Insurrectionist IFF tag_." Clicking in his zoom he caught a glimpse of the ship as it began to navigate it's way towards the Kendreth. A relatively long ship, it's top was painted a bright white and curved over before flaring out to a black underbelly which was drawn down from the top of the hull, making the ship look sort of like a rounded T when viewed from the front. Three engines in the rear of the ship glowed bright blue as they powered the craft in closer.

"That doesn't look like a Separatist craft…" Luke said, trailing off.

"_It's a pleasure craft called the _Raven_, although the design has been out of construction for a number of years. They are attempting to communicate with the station but it's hails are not following standard protocol and they have yet to receive a reply."_

"It's probably a handshake on the ship's end, they'll send out a pattern of hails before they'll get access."

"_Agreed_," Nathan replied quickly. "_I'll monitor communications and update you if the situation changes_." When he finished speaking, the outer door of the airlock shut silently, bathing the entire chamber in a red glow from the now activated lights. Oxygen began to spray into the airlock as the pressure equalized before the light switched to green with a ding. Walking inside, the centrifugal force of the asteroid's rotation brought him to the floor although it's force was quite small compared to the artificial gravity that was used on board the modern ships. The hallway that he was in was dark except for a few emergency lights and judging by the cool temperature inside it was more or less abandoned. A waypoint appeared on his HUD off in the direction of the main hub which was the location of the reactor. "_The station is now communicating with the ship and are discussing landing protocols. Judging by their language whoever is on board is quite important although they have yet to use a name._" With rifle at the ready, Luke did a quick check of his shields and camo before moving down the deserted hallway, his footsteps almost completely silent. He flicked on the enhanced vision mode which outlined all of the surfaces in faint blue lines to make it easier to see without using his lights.

"Nathan, what is the status of this part of the station? I'm not seeing anyone," Luke said after traversing a number of the darkened hallways.

"_Records seem to indicate this was some sort of a market area during the station's original usage but with the reduced population the Separatists have essentially abandoned it. I've scanned their assignment data and there doesn't appear to be anyone scheduled to be in the area for at least a week_."

"Good to know." Relieved, he started to move forward at a faster pace but didn't let his guard down, finger resting just a fraction of an inch off the trigger. It didn't take too long for him to reach what appeared to be the main atrium of the asteroid. Emerging from what now appeared to be maintenance hallways he was now inside of a large chamber that was lit oddly by the light streaming in from the arm connecting the rock to the main station. The rock walls had been worked to an almost mirror finish while a few pillars had been fashioned in the center that went all the way up to the ceiling. Chandeliers hung dead throughout the chamber, their lights either burnt out or the power being routed elsewhere. Down on the floor were a number of large planters which were now home to the husks of a number of different plants and trees, left long ago to die as the station was abandoned. Walking out onto the second floor, Luke made his way to one of the two enormous staircase and slinked down it till he was on the ground level, rifle at the ready. Directly ahead of him was where the arm attached itself to the asteroid, a large structure that had been built directly into the rock where there were a number of airlocks sitting dormant in case the station was compromised and the asteroid had to detach or contain itself. The attach point rose way up into the air where some of the cables and struts that were helping to connect the two together were exposed. It became quite apparent how fragile the station actually was and how easily the FURY would at the very least vibrate the pieces apart from each other. Thankfully the walkway between them and the hub was still open as natural light flooded in through the half-circle walkway towards the hub. He was about to dash into the walkway when there was a loud crashing of metal on metal that echoed through the atrium. "I thought you said there wasn't anyone here!" Luke hissed to Nathan as he ducked behind a pillar.

"_The_ _information that they had on their servers told me that no one was scheduled to be here, there's no way of knowing if they're free to travel wherever they please_." Pumping up the range of his range finder, Luke saw two red dots moving next to each other out on the opposite side of the atrium. Putting his rifle away and pulling out his pistol, he made sure the suppressor was fixed and ducked down as he hurried back into the room. Peaking up over the potter, he spotted the two people holding onto each other, their voices just barely reaching him as they spoke. Moving closer, he ran towards a potter in the center of the room so that he was to their backs. It only took a second for him to make up his mind on what to do. Bounding over the potter, he sprinted towards the two of them. The man on the left seemed to be wearing some sort of a maintenance uniform while the woman on his right was dressed in a pair of dirty pants and shirt. Firing off a single shot, it slammed into the back of her head, a spray of blood and bone erupting out the front of her skull as her dead body fell to the ground in a crumpled pile. This seemed to stun the man as he stopped and looked down at the woman who was already lying in a pool of her own blood. He finally turned around to see where the shot came from but couldn't see anything, her blood still dripping off the side of his face. At the last second, a shimmer in the air caught his eye just before he was thrown to the ground and slid across until he crumpled up against the third potter on the other side of the room.

"Make sure no one was alerted to this," Luke said as he ran over to the man and grabbed him by the neck. Twirling him around and pulling him against his chest, Luke kept the pistol pressed to his head as he pulled him into the shadows. "What's your job here?" he asked over his speakers.

"Fucking oppressor!" he called out, prompting Luke to grab his lower jaw and smash it shut.

"Either way you're going to die. The difference here is if you're going to make it easy and relatively painless or if I'm going to take my time and break every bone in your body before pummeling each of your organs to a pulp. Trust me…by the time they find your body, which they won't, they won't even know it's you." The man's eyes opened wide in terror as Luke, still camouflaged, growled into his ear. "Now…are you going to answer my question?" Slowly releasing his hand, the man seemed docile until his spit a wad of phlegm onto the ground by Luke's foot, sliding down his boot. Deactivating his camo, Luke's form took shape and it was obvious the man recognized the armor. With a swift motion, Luke smashed his foot down onto the man's right foot, the sound of all the bones breaking as they pierced through his shoes while blood poured out. With his mouth shut, the only sound he made was muffled as tears and sweat rolled down his face. "I could do this all day…So, what's your job?" He let the man's jaw go as he took a number of deep breaths, the pain obviously already taking it's toll.

"I'm…maintenance…"

"That's a start. How much security is around the reactor?"

"Why do you want to know that?" he asked, fearful. Luke didn't hesitate and grabbed the man's right arm and held it out to his side for a second before yanking on it in one swift motion, pulling it out of the joint. Compared to the initial reaction to his mutilated foot the man was relatively calm as he called out behind a clenched jaw, more tears streaming down his already beat red face.

"It doesn't matter why I want to know that, just tell me," Luke said, his voice lined with tension as he was losing patience with the man. Taking a few breaths, he prepared to speak again.

"There are always two guards on duty who restrict access. Once inside there's another door that must be activated in two locations before you can gain access to the actual reactor."

"One last question and I'll end your pathetic existence. Who's the person who just arrived on a luxury yacht?"

"I…I…I don't know," he began, stammering in fear of further punishment. "We were told someone was coming so we had to get the station in order but we weren't told anything else. Rumor has it that they're one of the resistance leaders coming to make sure we're sticking to our beliefs."

"Nathan, does that seem to be accurate?" he asked, the speakers shut off for the moment.

"_I see no reason to believe he's lying. Radio chatter is indicating this is a high-value target but there's nothing else popping up. Surprisingly they're running a very tight ship_."

"On your knees," Luke said as he let go of the man, slumping down onto his good leg.

"You'll kill me but the ideas that we fight for will live on. If you and your corrupt government manage to win this war you'll watch the systems you fought to protect break away one-by-one."

"We'll see who's laughing at the end," Luke said as he raised his pistol and placed the barrel behind the man's head. He was about to turn and speak when the silent thwack of the shot echoed out, the man's forehead exploding as the bullet impacted the rock floor. Holstering his weapon and pulling his BR55 again he began to make his way towards the walkway. Tactically the arm was a nightmare, providing no cover while moving across it but so far it seemed like he was undetected and would be able to at least get into the hub before setting off alarms.

"_I suggest ignoring stealth for speed here, soldier_," Nathan chimed in.

"Agreed." Reactivating his camo he took a few breaths before lowering his head and sprinting off. It only took a few seconds for his hulking form to make it to the other side where he pushed up against the wall and waited before moving into the hub proper. The hallways were completely utilitarian with exposed wiring and strut, the fluorescent lights flickering every once and a while. The waypoint marker was slightly above him now and he had a decision to make about either going left or right. Without any clue as to where to go he chose the left and began looking for some sort of stairwell to get up higher. It didn't take long before he finally found a small set of stairs which he quickly climbed. "Nathan, can you find me an elevator?"

"_Eschewing stealth, I see_?"

"I want to try and catch whoever this person is while they're still in the vicinity. Hopefully I'll be long gone before they figure out what's happening.

"_That's the plan, at least_." A second later a new waypoint appeared much closer, just around one of the curved hallways in front of him. Quickly moving towards it he spotted two people walking towards him, unaware of his presence. Flicking the firing mode to single burst, he put his sight on the left one's head and squeezed of a silent shot. A split second later their head cracked open in a red mist as the body collapsed to the ground, their friend stunned like the man earlier. A second later he took another shot which dropped low and severed the man's spine and tearing an artery as blood poured onto the smooth metal floor. Stepping over them he arrived at a small maintenance elevator and ducked into it. "_I'll take it to the reactor level_."

"Sounds good."

"_Bad news though. It seems like their visitor is heading in the same direction as the reactor level and judging by the amount of chatter they're coming with some support_."

"Hmmm…well, we'll have to deal with that when we get to it then," he replied, worried about the armed forces moving his way but not letting them deter him from his mission. Stepping into the elevator, it ground slightly as it absorbed his weight, the door closing quietly before making the journey upwards. Checking his rifle he made sure everything on his armor was okay. Just before he reached his destination he sensed someone nearing which was backed up by their slight movement pinging his motion tracker. Holding his rifle in his left hand, he readied an armored fist as the doors opened up. In a second the man's face caved in as Luke punched forward, a kick to the chest throwing him off to the side as the last few breaths left the man's body. The floor that he was on was just as cramped as before but it seemed to be kept up with the lights shining steadily and the walls and piping maintained. On the floor was a poorly painted radioactive symbol with an arrow pointing towards the hallway to his right. He could feel that here were a handful of people nearby but couldn't get an exact number. Making his way through the curved hallway he finally found the entrance to the reactor, the two guards standing outside with old rifles at their sides. Flicking back to three round burst, he brought up his scope and centered the man closest to him. The appeared to be wearing black Kevlar armor on their chests over some worn BDUs but the body armor wouldn't do much to stop the rounds which would be coming from the side. Aiming at his right arm, he squeezed off two shots which hit him dead on. Blood sprayed out from both the entrance and exit wounds as he collapsed to the ground in pain, calling out to his friend who had ducked away from the door and was taking cover behind a bulkhead. Squeezing off another burst, he silenced the screaming man as his head jerked back, bone fragments and blood splattering against the walls and floor. A few shots rang out and sparked off the wall near him but it was obvious the man had no idea where Luke was at and was shooting blindly, hoping to hit him. Waiting, Luke kept his rifle ready, the ammo counter reading 25 rounds left in the magazine. For a split second the guard exposed his head to fire off another burst and was quickly decapitated as the three rounds impacted into his skull. Hopping up, he ran towards the door.

"_Be on notice, security teams have been alerted to a situation_," Nathan said, a slight hint of stress appearing in AI's voice.

"Figures as much. Try and slow them down until I can get the bomb planted, I just need a few minutes," Luke replied, the adrenaline already pumping through his body. Turning on the frame into the control room, he quickly spotted four technicians cowering near desks. The room itself was rather spacious, wrapping around the brightly lit reactor in the center while a number of computers sat idling on the outside. Quickly switching to fully automatic, Luke emptied out the remaining rounds in the magazine, easily downing three of the techs while the fourth tried to run off. Grabbing his SMG from his thigh, he let off a quick burst at the fourth man who dropped in a mist of blood as his back was riddled with bullets. Removing the spent magazine, he slapped in a new one and loaded a round into the chamber before securing the entire control room. Walking around the reactor, he saw that most of the computers had been taken offline or removed; the only ones that were being used seemed to have been installed after the Separatists had moved in. Inside the reactor room was a number of rods submerged beneath a pool of water that kept their temperature in check. The deep blue liquid shimmered slightly as it lapped at the sides of the cylindrical reactor cluster, a single walkway suspended over it at the height of the control room he was in at the moment.

"_As long as the bomb is in the room it should initiate a cascading explosion_," Nathan commented as he made his way back to the door. "_If it doesn't, the explosion will eject an enormous amount of radiation which should do the same job_." Walking up to the door he saw that it was a few inches of Titanium-A, most likely sandwiched over another few inches of lead lining to prevent radiation from leaking out. It was held in place by four large clamps on the corners which kept it sealed tight against the bulkhead and would make pulling it off by force alone almost impossible.

"Can you unlock these for me?" Luke asked as he stood there, an eye on his motion tracker.

"_Negative. Those clamps are connected directly to the switches in a closed system, they're not connected to the ship's network_."

"Fuck. What about the glass, can we blow it out?"

"_That would be the most likely option although you will be left without any explosives besides the 40mm grenades you have with you_." Luke didn't respond but he knew that he'd just have to make-do with what the cards that he'd been given. Taking the three grenades off his belt he set them up against the glass at the corners and in the center. Each one had a timer set on it and he ran around the room out of the blast range and waited for them to go off. A few seconds passed before three enormous explosions rocked the room followed by the sound of some glass breaking. Hurrying back around he saw that an enormous portion of the window remained intact besides the millions of fractures that cut through it. A few small holes were blown in it and he used the butt of his rifle to pound through them. It took longer than he had hoped but eventually he created a hole larger enough for him to force his entire body into which brought the rest of the pane out of it's housing. The jump to the walkway was too awkward so he dropped into the coolant as his suit began to squawk warnings of high radiation levels. A few seconds later he pulled himself up onto the walkway and pulled the FURY out and found it's magnetic grip and turned the electromagnet on. Reaching underneath he attached it to the metal grating, making sure the receiver for the remote detonation was working. "_You have nearby inbound. I've locked down doors on their way here but not everything is operational so they _will_ reach you sooner rather than later_."

"I'm all done." Putting his wet backpack back on, he shouldered his rifle and prepared to fight his way off the station.


	18. I'm Not A Spartan

"I'm Not A Spartan"

Coolant splashed off of Luke's armor and gear as he pulled himself up into the empty window frame with his arms, swinging his legs through the opening and into the control room. All over his motion tracker were clusters of red dots moving in different directions but ultimately getting closer to him.

"_You are either going to have to stay and fight or run through them before they surround you_," Nathan said matter-of-factly. Moving towards the only entrance to the reactor control room, he peeked his head and could hear the sounds of footsteps on the metal floors near him. It wasn't hard to feel them either, their adrenaline and anticipation crawling around his mind like a thousand spiders.

"I'm going to stay here and fight," Luke said after a few seconds. Reaching back, he slammed the control room door shut and locked it, hoping to delay them long. "Alert the Argos to the situation and tell them that if things get out of hand I'm going to set off the nuke."

"_Understood_." Putting his BR55 away, Luke pulled out the slightly modified M90A that was attached to the left side of his back. On the left side of the barrel was an attached rail which was holding two more full clips of ammo in addition to the loaded six. Pumping one round into the chamber he hurried around the room to make sure there were no other exits where they could flank him before he set about making some cover for himself. Grabbing a server bank that looked like it had been dead for years, he tore it from the wall and threw it to the ground on the left side of the door. On it's side, it wasn't high enough to provide much cover for his enormous body so he found another dead computer console and tore it from the wall before stacking it up onto the server which was high enough for him to get behind provided he squatted slightly. Guards began to assemble outside the door as they began to formulate a plan to break in.

"Once they're about to get in, kill the lights in the entire area."

"_That's not very fair, now is it?_"

"Nope…but I'm not really in the mood to give them a chance to get a hit on me if I can help it. Try and keep that VIP grounded as well, I'd like to try and get to them sometime." A few hollow shots rang out from the other side of the door, the bullets pinging off different walls and pipes as they tried to shoot their way in. Pulling out his combat knife, he held it in his hand while gripping the pump of the shotgun while it was pointed at the door, ready to drop whoever entered. His eyes watched the motion tracker which seemed to suggest there was at least fifteen guards outside of him trying to get in. Dull thumps echoed as they smashed something against the door, possibly trying to break the hinges off which would also be impossible with just a rifle or even their grenades. As he waited he flexed his right hand a few times, the blood of the man from earlier caked dry on the material already. Regardless of what they were doing, there was a small pang of guild in the back of his mind at the fact that to guarantee his survival and potentially the survival of Humanity against the Covenant, he would need to kill more than a fair share of Separatists. The feeling didn't last long though when the metal in the center of the door started to glow orange from heat. Moving over near it, small chunks flaked off and fell to the ground as they began to burn their way through the thick door. After a few more seconds, a fist sized hole appeared and a jet of flame was burning in the air before being retracted. Sticking the barrel of his shotgun near it, he fired off a shot to the right of the door which caused a number of men to scream in pain as their legs were torn apart. In response, a rifle barrel jammed through and began to fire wildly although all the shots missed him by a mile. Firing off another burst, he hit a few more men who dragged themselves away from the opening to tend to their wounds.

"Plant the charges!" someone yelled from the other side. Taking a few steps back, Luke got himself ready as he mounted his shotgun and took out his SMG, clicking a new magazine into it while keeping his knife out. There was a flurry on the other side of the door as guards put C-7 explosive foam on the hinges and contact points.

"Kill these lights," Luke said while he was taking cover. An inky darkness fell over the reactor room and surrounding hallways which was quickly cut through as Luke turned on his night vision and enhanced vision mode. A few seconds later, a blast rocked the door in a flash of bright white and orange which quickly passed as the metal panel hurtled towards he wall and fell to the ground, deformed and burnt from the impact. Standing up with his knife at the ready, Luke got near the wall as a number of guards came into the room, their narrow flashlights casting long shadows against whatever they touched. Luke could feel their tension and apprehension and decided to prey on that as he grabbed the nearest man by his mouth and dragged the blade across his throat as a burst of blood sprayed out across his comrade. Collapsing to the ground with a faint whimper and gurgle while trying to breath, his terrified teammates turned around and looked down at his body as he tried to claw for help that wasn't coming. By now, Luke had already circled around them and was moving to find a new target. A straggler had wandered away from the group which made for easy pickings. Smacking his gun to the ground, Luke plunged the knife right into his heart before the man could even let out a cry. The four remaining guards spun around and centered their lights on their dead friend as Luke disappeared back into the shadows. Fully terrified, someone let out a burst of fire which the others did as well, sparks exploding all around as the bullets cut through wires and destroyed the remaining computers. Circling around the back of the reactor, Luke pulled his shotgun back out and slipped three rounds back into the chamber and opened fire. The first burst illuminated the control room as the man's chest tore open in a cloud of red blood and flesh, the second falling to the ground with the remnants of his left arm and his chest torn open. Looking at the last two men in the green hue of night vision, Luke popped off two quick shots as they fell to the ground. Just as the shell bounced off the floor, he heard the distinct sound of a grenade bouncing off of metal and dove backwards as the entire area was engulfed in flames and shrapnel. His shield flared a bright gold as it dropped to half health where it sat for a few seconds before pushing itself back up to full power.

"Maybe that got him?" someone asked as Luke pushed himself back to his feet, shutting the camo down. Running through the door, he held his shotgun to his chest and walked into the flashlight beams that were pointed right at him. For some reason, none of them fired a shot as Luke emptied out the last two shots, dropping four more guards before he barreled through the remaining two on that side.

"_Excellent!_" Nathan said as Luke jumped up a flight of stairs and continued running. His night vision shut off as he reentered lit hallways and tried to get away from the control room as fast as possible.

"I need to get to that hangar and figure out who's on the station right now."

"_You won't be able to get there fast enough if you try and navigate this maze of hallways_."

"What exactly are you suggesting…" Luke asked although he already had an idea of what Nathan was going to say.

"_If you get outside the station you can run right up to the hangar bay and cut them off there_."

"That sounds way too risky…if they've mobilize any of their ships I'll be left in the open."

"_Unfortunately I have no other solutions. Judging by the speed at which they're traveling they'll be there soon_," he replied flatly. Mouthing a curse, Luke continued to run towards the waypoint that Nathan dropped on his HUD. It took about a minute to get there but he finally arrived at an airlock that was waiting for him to enter. Stepping into the cramped space he waited patiently for the door to close and heard the hiss of the atmosphere draining out while he caught his breath. Silently, the outside door opened up and he was looking out into space and the Kendreth Asteroid belt. Floating away from the door and out onto the metal skin of the station, he lowered the magnetic level of his suit so that he would be able to detach himself with enough force. Up above him and off to the side was the perfect spot for him to push off. "_Soldier…may I ask what your intentions are?"_

"I'm going to push off and float up to the top of the station. Should let me get up before they arrive."

"_I'd just like to point out the enormous risks associated with this maneuver. If you don't properly arrest yourself you'll be dead_." Luke ignored Nathan's concern and bear crawled over to the ledge and readied himself. Aiming his head towards the hangars above him, he angled himself so that his body was perpendicular to the skin of the station. With his legs coiled up underneath him and his hands ready to push off he squeezed himself down to build up as much energy as possible. He mouthed a countdown from three as the adrenaline burst back into his veins and made his limbs feel as light as feathers. A final blink of his eyes and he released every ounce of strength as he hurtled to the top of the station. Just a few inches below him, the silver skin zipped past, open panels and protrusions rushing past him, threatening to suddenly smack into him and throw him off in some obscure direction. It only took a few seconds for him to cover half the distance as he continued upwards. Readying himself, he began to focus on where he was going to lock himself down and stop the momentum. To his right were a few small antennas which looked to be within arm's reach. Extending his arms, he grasped for the small metallic cylinders, his fingers gripping tightly as he felt his body slow and come back around. But a second later he felt something give way as the antenna tore out of it's mounting while dragging a cluster of rotted out wires which had long been severed.

"Fuck!" he yelled out as he spun in a relatively quick circle. Suppressing the momentary panic that threatened to cloud his judgment, he maxed out his magnetic levels and slapped his hands against the hull. The first few times his hands slid along the skin before releasing him. With palms opened completely, he glanced upwards and saw that he had almost no room left to stop himself so he made sure the last attempt counted. With his head pointing upwards he pushed both hands into the hull and felt them lock into place while the rest of his body continued up and over himself, his stomach now facing outwards. Focusing on his feet, he curled them back and felt a solid thud as they took hold and he stopped, his body contorted into an arch.

"_What could go wrong_?"

"Shut up…we made it didn't we?" Luke snapped back.

"_The odds of that maneuver being successful were astronomical, I hope you know that_."

"I don't need to know the odds." Letting his hands go, Luke used his core muscles to pull himself up to standing height so that he could figure out where he had stopped. With just a few feet left till the edge of the hangar there had been absolutely no room for error. Climbing the remaining portion he moved up onto a large open space with a number of landing strips for the smaller ships to follow as they landed inside the hangar. Almost directly above him, the pleasure yacht was moored to one of the umbilical arms that extended up from the top of the hangar with the fuel and supply lines still connected which meant it still wasn't ready for departure. Skipping across the open space of the landing tracks, Luke made his way to one of the airlocks and again squeezed himself in. "These things weren't mean with me in mind…" he grumbled.

"_I'll make sure the UNSC makes all future projects fit the specifications of JORMUNGANDR armor_." Readying his BR55, Luke burst through the open door the minute it unlocked and began scanning for targets. He didn't see any at first as he let his eyes glance over the hangar for a second. A multi-tiered room, small transports were suspended above the hangar by large arms and hydraulics. All around the sides of the hangar were a number of crates and cargo containers that were locked shut with rather heavy duty locks. In the center of the room was a relatively tall traffic control tower which had a 360 degree view of all the ships entering and leaving the area. Fiddling with one as he walked by, Luke wondered what was inside that was so important but didn't pay much attention as he spotted a few mechanics milling about in the open. Switching to single-shot, he centered his crosshairs on one of the three men and squeezed off a headshot as he fell to the ground, the pink mist still hanging in the air. A second later the last two silenced shots rang out and they collapsed off the small crates they were sitting on. "_You have inbound and it looks like they're packing some serious firepower. MA5Bs and other assorted small-arms."_

"How would these jokers get a hold of military equipment like that?"

"_I don't believe they're directly connected to the personnel on this station, if their uniforms are anything to judge by. They almost look like private contractors._" Nathan's tone of voice conveyed the same level of surprise that Luke had when he heard this.

"What would private contractors be doing out here? Who are they guarding?"

"_I believe your target is a white male, approximately thirty years old. He is dressed in a dark blue suit which is impossible to miss compared to his security detail. There are eight soldiers directly on him with another four split between a forward detail and a rear detail_." This new fact made Luke regret taking down the mechanics as they were sitting in the middle of the room and would spook the front group and potentially force them back into the station. "_Their only access point is through that supply elevator at the base of the tower. Once they get on it I can override the controls and force it to come to our level and stay here_."

"Do it," he replied as he made his way towards waist height crate near the mechanics which also happened to afford him a perfect firing line into the elevator.

* * *

Adjusting his tie, Arthur Gallahand was more worried about the sweat that was staining his crisp white shirt than the combat taking place floors below him. Reports from the station's security were saying that they were dealing with a Spartan which was absolutely ridiculous. Even more ridiculous was the report that he disappeared and appeared in front of them whenever he wanted. At this point in the war effort it was a waste of valuable resources to send someone like a Spartan to destroy a rebel outpost. Even if it was, they'd be long gone before he could reach them considering the amount of sabotage they'd been committing as they hurried back to his ship. Well…the bank's ship technically, he thought to himself. They were still a few floors away from the hangar and they'd be on their way back to Earth. The trip had been a relative failure though. The rebels here weren't as connected to the overall effort as they'd been led to believe and it turned out the raids were being coordinated by another group in a neighboring system although the "governor" of this facility was hesitant to say who. In the end, the bank would find out who it was their investors would be most benefited by. His report had already been beamed out over their secure channel and would already have been dissected and analyzed so that they could plan their next move. Gallahand couldn't help but smirk at the plan that had been concocted. If it worked and the war turned in their favor somehow, the investors would've orchestrated the perfect rebellion. And if the war didn't turn around they'd all be dead in the end so what did it matter? He noticed the guards had gotten tenser as they approached the elevator.

"What's wrong?" he asked the squad leader who was standing to his right.

"They haven't seen the Spartan in a while but there might've been a breach in the hangar," he replied tersely.

"Do what you have to do. I don't want some UNSC pig stopping us at this point in time."

"With all due respect, sir, do you know anything about the Spartans?"

"Of course, I do read the newspapers occasionally. The propaganda is quite entertaining at times I must say." The guard snorted in return as they piled into the elevator, Gallahand maneuvered to the side of the elevator and behind the sides so that he wouldn't be in the open when the doors opened up. A quite humming filled the air as the lift made it's way upwards, quick pings as it passed the maintenance floors in between. Bored, he pulled out his personal computer and checked a few of the archived e-mails that he didn't have a chance to read before making the Slipspace jump. Looking over the words, he saw something on the control panel in front of him and looked as the lights went dead, including the emergency stop. His heart started to beat a little faster but he calmed himself by remembering how old the station was; anyways, the elevator was still moving and the lights inside it were still burning brightly. Putting the device back into his jacket pocket, he waited patiently as the elevator stopped. The metal doors slid apart slowly but his vision was obscured as the lead man's head exploded in a spray of blood and brain that covered his face. Shocked by the gruesome scene, he didn't move as soldier after soldier fell to the ground, their blood sprayed against the back wall as precise shots tore their heads and necks open. Startling him out of this was the lead guard grabbing his leg, a look of terror on his face as blood poured from a neck wound, mixing in with the already soaked floor. In a matter of seconds, all but he and another guard had been taken down. Finally thinking again, he got up against the elevator controls and stood there trembling. Reaching down, he grabbed one of the pistols from a guard's holster and checked it over, his knowledge of handguns running thin.

"Listen…Spartan…I think we have a misunderstanding here. I'm not with those men…I was captured and brought here but when you showed up they got spooked and tried to get me off the station!" He looked over at the guard who was staring back coldly. Without really aiming, Arthur fired all the rounds in the clip at him, the heavy slugs tearing through his body armor as more blood poured out, the lifeless body slumped in the corner. "That's the last of them! Is it safe for me to come out?"

* * *

"I'm not a Spartan," Luke said coolly over his external speakers which had the nice effect of giving his voice and deeper and more menacing tone. Walking up the door with his rifle at the ready he couldn't let his guard down considering the man inside had access to a number of weapons and seemed to at least have a basic knowledge of how to use them.

"Oh…I'm sorry, I just heard them saying that's what was running around on the station." Only a few feet away, Luke could see the blood-splattered pant leg of the man as he cowered in the corner. Staying close to the side of the elevator, he stopped with just a foot to go and silently put his rifle away and pulled out the pistol, making sure it was on semi-automatic. A second passed before he SWAT turned into the elevator to subdue the man. A single shot ricocheted off his shields as the man tried to fire off another but dropped the gun when his arm was broken almost in half on the edge of the door. He screamed in pain as Luke grabbed him by the neck and pulled him out of the elevator and tossed him to the ground outside it.

"You're a fucking Spartan," he called out as he lay on the ground, cradling his arm.

"Like I said, I'm not a Spartan. Just tell me what I want to know and I'll think about bringing you back with me. Otherwise you'll be killed when the nuke I planted goes off and blows every one of you pieces of shit sky high."

"Uh…uh…what do you want to know?" he stammered.

"Name."

"I'm Arthur Gallahand." Lying on the floor, he was able to see his terrified face in the cold silver visor of Luke as he stood over him, pistol at his side, blood caked onto his armor.

"Who do you work for?"

"I'm a private contractor, these guys hired me to do some defense consulting." Luke sensed the lie even before it began and was going to make the man pay. A single shot to his groin made the man scream out as he gripped the bloody mess that used to be his genitals.

"Stop lying to my fucking face. I know what you're thinking even before you do so you might as well make it easy on yourself." When he finished speaking, the man had stopped squirming and had let a smile come across his face while the tears streamed down his cheeks. A quiet laugh started to form as he shook his head as if he was having some sort of conversation in his head.

"Why should I even bother? You'll never let me live, and even if you do it's not like your superiors will. I signed my death certificate a long time ago; I suppose you're just here to collect."

"_I don't believe you'll be getting any other answers from him_," Nathan said quietly.

"Agreed, he's calmed his mind down which means he's already decided he's going to die." Leaning over the man, he began to search his pockets and stopped when his gauntlets found the man's computer. Pulling out the palm sized device, he put it into one of the small pouches on his waist and proceeded searching the rest of him for anything else that was of value. Satisfied, Luke held his pistol out at the man's head as he smiled in return, relishing in his death. The smile faded though as he lowered it to his legs and fired off two shots at both knee caps, his bent knees collapsing to the floor as Gallahand fought back another scream of pain. A third shot into his thigh severed the Femoral Artery which quickly stained his pants black as blood poured out.

"_I've alerted the _Argos_ to our position and a Pelican is in-bound to pick you up_."

"Thanks," Luke replied quietly, walking towards the airlock with his shoulders slumped slightly. Holstering his pistol, he walked into the airlock and overrode the console's protests as he opened the outer door before locking the interior one. Atmosphere rushed out into space as Luke walked across the open space. Above them was a large black ship, barely visible against the seas of stars behind it. A few minutes later he was on the bridge of the ship as it sat a safe distance away from the station, waiting to blow the FURY. It was rather anti-climactic as a single point of light erupted into a bright wave of white energy which quickly dissipated as the molten living quarters spun around uncontrollably into nearby asteroids. In a single moment, the kill count that Luke had been unconsciously keeping spiraled out of control and he couldn't help but duck his head away as the rest of the bridge crew watched in silence.


	19. A Night Out

"A Night Out"

A single sliver of golden light cut through the rear door of the Pelican, the beam illuminated in the darkness of the compartment where it landed on Luke's exposed face while he held his helmet in his hands. Other soldiers stood inside as they waited for the Pelican to land, swaying softly as it dropped to the ground. The scars of battle were clearly visible with wide swaths of blood sprayed across his armor along with a number of large scratches and dents on the metal plating where bullets had hit him, a hundred small nicks on his left side from the grenade explosion. Most prominent was the large scrape across the top of his helmet from the single bullet Gallahand shot at him, an odd monument to the man that he had known for no more than a few minutes before killing without mercy. Adjusting his eyes slightly so that the light wasn't hitting them directly, he stood a little taller as the drop ship ended its descent and the doors opened up slowly. At first all he could see was the concrete landing pad that was covered in heat waves as the lines rippled back and forth and mirages formed. He finally saw his three teammates standing in black t-shirts that were tucked into urban ACUs, still imposing even without their armor on. He cracked a small smile as they caught their glimpse of him inside the Pelican before he stepped off the rear and onto the hot ground, the bright sunlight glinting off his armor as if he was some sort of knight. Wearing all of his web gear again and holding his helmet in his left arm, he extended his right to Dagger who gave a quick salute before they shook. Like always, Claymore was next who saluted and shook before Luke arrived at Katana who stood in front of him, her skin tanned from the Australian sun which highlighted her soft pink lips as she parted them and flashed a bright smile towards him. He returned the smile as he held her hand for a few seconds too long before stepping back.

"You look good," Dagger said with a slight hint of sarcasm as he eyed the battle damage and the blood that had taken on a deep crimson color against the metallic black stealthing.

"Well, they look a lot worse than I do."

"I'd sure hope so," he shot back with a quick laugh. "We were listening in to the reports sent back by the Argos. Sounds like you fucked them up pretty bad." Luke clenched his teeth for a second before responding.

"Yeah, after I planted the bomb it got a little hairy but it wasn't anything we couldn't handle. None of them were trained in combat so it was just a matter of taking my time and not forcing anything." His eyes glanced off to the side of Dagger's head as he noticed someone walking against the flow of soldiers into the UNSC's main building. He instantly recognized the man as Captain Ambresio, dressed in his gray coat and pants that he normally only wore when he was on his ship and not planet side. Ambresio remained where he was once he saw Luke spot him but his stance seemed to suggest he should speed up whatever Luke was doing.

"We're just glad you're back," Katana said as she took a few steps towards him, her shoulder brushing up against his.

"It was weird not having you three at my side. All I had to keep me company was Nathan and that wasn't that fun," he added on at the end, purposefully loud so that the AI would hear him. Motioning with his head, he led his team towards the Captain who was still waiting patiently. Saluting sharply as they met on the same walkway that they arrived on a few days earlier, he received one in response before Ambresio began speaking.

"Congratulations on the successful mission. You've done a lot to give this a lot of credibility and standing in comparison to the Spartans."

"Thank-you, sir."

"We just need to debrief you fully and go over a few things before you get some time to yourself. The _Kamiak_ will be getting her orders any day now so enjoy whatever leave you can get because I assure you there won't be any after that."

"Understood, sir," he replied as they walked inside.

Making the long trek through the Hive, Ambresio and Luke arrived back in the same briefing room as before where Guthridge gave him the mission initially. There were fewer people this time although the Admiral and the Twins were present.

"We can get started now," Guthridge said as he tapped the table which caused the image of the Kendreth to animate a small explosion before it displayed the last known trajectories of the station, the three mutilated habitats spinning out of control through the asteroid field. "As anticipated, the nuclear payload destroyed the station and critically weakened the nearby asteroids which were being used as residential areas by the Separatists. With the central hub destroyed, they were knocked out of orbit which will kill any of those still alive after the blast." Standing on the very top level of the briefing room, he watched the animation replay over and over as Guthridge explained everything. "Sword, can you please go over the mission? Don't need to go into details but just give us a blow by blow report." Startled at being asked to explain things, he took a few seconds before he nodded and stepped down into the pit with the table and the holographic projectors. Having passed his gear off on the way, he set his helmet down on the table which gave Nathan a chance to hop onto the projectors and join the Twins in watching the debriefing.

"After departing the Argos I traveled to this asteroid…" he said, his voice trailing off as he waited for the animation to recycle before he pointed towards the part that he landed on. "Once inside, I moved towards the spoke that connected it to the hub where I encountered two civilians who I was forced to subdue with force in order to maintain my secrecy." He couldn't help but remember the happy couple leaving their little hiding space before they were both killed. "From there I made my way to the reactor room in the center of the hub. There was light resistance guarding the door as well as a small presence of civilians monitoring the reactor itself. During this time, the then unknown VIP had docked his ship and was onboard where he was monitored by Nathan." He looked over at Nathan who nodded his thanks in response. "I eliminated all resistance and planted the bomb but by that time the station's security forces had been alerted to my presence and quickly surrounded the location which forced me to fight my way out. After that I exited the station through an airlock and made my way to the hangar where I cut off the VIP and interrogated him in order to gain any and all knowledge from him before the station was destroyed."

"If I may…why did you not capture him for further questioning in the proper environment," a man interrupted from behind him. Luke couldn't get a good look at the man's face as he leaned in against one of the many railings surrounding the room.

"He was dead weight. I did not have any orders to take prisoners and executed the man after I finished questioning him. By that time he had no new information to offer and I felt that his personal computer would be more valuable than a fanatic like him," Luke responded defensively, angry that someone was questioning decisions he made in the heat of battle.

"Hmm, well, I hope you know you killed our one and only lead into a previously unknown network with connections to the banking system." When he finished speaking, the man walked off, still obscured in the darkness. Flustered, Luke stood next to the holographic table as the room remained silent, the only sounds coming from the fans of the different pieces of electronic equipment around them.

"We're still looking over the information that we received from your helmet camera and the personal computer but at the moment it seems to be a sizable amount of data which will go a long way to figuring out where the funds are coming from," Guthridge said in an attempt to get the conversation back on track. "Sword, I'm sure you're in need of some sleep so you're dismissed. We'll take care of the formalities." Snapping a salute, Luke picked up his helmet and departed. Walking out of the room, he put his helmet on so that he could speak to Nathan.

"Who was that who was giving me flak before he left?"

"That would be Colonel Ackerson."

* * *

"Hey there," Katana said quietly as she walked into the locker room that they had been using while at the Hive. The far wall had four containers for their armor, Luke's open as he sat on one of the benches with his right gauntlet sitting in his lap as he cleaned it. He had changed into the shirt and pants that they were wearing when he arrived, a nice change after being locked away in the armor for over a week straight. A white rag was in his hand along with a special cleaning solution that he sprayed onto the metal before rubbing the grime off. Katana closed the door behind her as she walked closer to him, sitting down on the bench across from him as he remained focused on his work.

"Hey," he replied quietly, not looking up from his work.

"How were things out there?" She asked, content to watch him clean his armor. He didn't say anything at first, rubbing off the last flecks of blood that had made their way into the hinges between armor plating. "If there's something that's bothering you, it's better to tell someone than let it eat you up inside." When she finished speaking, he let the glove rest on his legs as he set the rag down behind him.

"Do you ever dream during cryo-sleep?" he asked. She crunched her forehead together when she heard this, unsure of what he was getting at. "Do you dream during cryo-sleep or is it just black?"

"Um…I'm not really sure, I don't really remember much when I go to sleep but I haven't really done it too often either."

"Well…I do and on the way back I saw all the faces of those people I killed, just staring at me as they motioned for me to join them; join the dead." He let his shoulders droop a little as he spoke, his eyes fixed squarely on the black armor in his lap. "I know that I shouldn't have any sympathy for these people, they're nothing but traitors to their own people but in the back of my head I can't help shake this feeling that what I did was wrong."

"Sword, you're suffering from PTSD. You've never had to put yourself through something like this and your mind is just…just trying to come to grips with all of it," she replied, emoting with her hands as she sat there. "You've got to fight it, all of it. We need you to be here for us; with us. _I_ need you to be here."

"I can't just ignore everything that happened there," Luke replied, almost beat down.

"Don't. You take every painful memory and you use it as a mental shield so that when the next time you find yourself in a painful situation it's easier. And after that it'll be even easier for you to pick yourself right back up and get ready to fight again." Katana leaned in and placed her hands on Luke's cheeks as he remained still. She moved in closer and for a moment it seemed as if they were going to kiss but she instead pressed her forehead to his and let their noses touch. "We're all here for each other until the end of our days," she whispered, her breath tickling his lips.

"I know," he replied, wrapping his hands around her lips before he pulled her hands away from his cheeks and held them in his.

"Come out with us tonight. Dagger and Claymore have been waiting patiently for you to come back before they went out and got some food. I get the feeling this is the last night in a long time we'll have time to ourselves before getting shipped out so we should make the most of it."

"Yeah, that sounds good. I've been living off ship food for too long and I could use a decent meal."

* * *

The temperature had settled on a heavenly eighty degrees as the Tempests walked along what used to be the affluent neighborhoods settled along Rose Bay, now converted to a bustling commercial sector filled with expensive restaurants and shops. UNSC personnel on leave scurried back and forth as they killed time before dinner reservations or jumped into stores as they were getting ready to close down. Music reverberated through the ground from a number of the nearby clubs which had long lines outside of them as lights flashed and flickered inside. Claymore had drawn the short straw and decided where they were going to eat, settling on a grill that a number of the ONI spooks swore by (or so he said). Sitting up on the hill a little looking out towards the ocean, the four of them made their way there, dressed in the black t-shirts and ACUs that had been assigned to them when Luke was deployed.

"I can't wait to get a burger!" Claymore said, holding his enormous arms up towards the sky with an equally impressive smile across his face. Luke smirked at his friend's enthusiasm and listened as the rest of them listed off what they were looking forward to the most.

"Just give me some fish. It's been years since I've had a good piece of fish so hopefully they can deliver here," Dagger said.

"Fish, eh? Where is it that you came from?" Katana asked.

"Ballast," Dagger replied quickly. The rest of them exhaled in understanding, the planet being renown for it's extraordinary fishing grounds.

"A piece of cheesecake would be nice," Luke said, his eyes looking up into the sky as he was thinking over what he was looking for. "Yeah…that's what I want the most."

"Pizza," Katana said, finishing their wishlist. "The shit they serve on the ships is _not_ pizza." They all laughed at her insistence as they arrived at the restaurant. The building was relatively modern looking and as they approached, they saw that there was an attached club that was, like the others, packed with people looking to get in and let loose for a while. As they were walking up the steps to get their seats, Katana tapped Luke's hand and nodded her head towards it with a smile on her face which he responded to with a shrug of his shoulders. They were led out to the balcony and sat down at a small table near the edge of it, a perfect view of the bays and the Pacific Ocean. At first their conversation was idle chit-chat about interesting things they'd heard but it inevitably turned towards Luke's mission.

"What was it like?" Dagger asked.

"For the most part, there wasn't all that much that was different. Ninety-five percent of the time, the training kicked in and it was automatic. I guess the most terrifying times are when you're facing some new situation that could mean the difference between life and death."

"Like?" Claymore pressed, leaning in.

"In the control room Nathan told me I was going to be surrounded within a few seconds and that I'd either have to make a run for it and stay and fight. Either way I'd have the element of surprise, on the one hand they wouldn't expect to see me come barreling down the hallway but it doesn't leave me too many options once I've left. By staying, I could control the environment and then press forward on my own terms but I was cornered." He stopped for a few seconds as he reflected on his decisions. At the time it almost felt like second nature but looking at it from a distance he was able to analyze his rational for why he did certain things.

"I can't wait to get out there," Claymore said, finally breaking the silence. "Twice now you've gotten to have all the fun while we're waiting for your ass to get out of the hot zone."

"Hey…don't think I don't want you three there by my side. Trouble just keeps finding me whenever I seem to be off on my own." Cutting off the conversation was the waiter who brought their food to them. Luke had ordered a large steak and french fries while the other three got their dishes of choice which they attacked instantly while still savoring every bite. Luke was particularly pleased with his cut of meat, something he hadn't been able to eat since beginning training and he was thankful that at least in the Inner Colonies some people were able to enjoy simple pleasures such as a flavorful piece of steak. He took each bite slowly so that he could enjoy the flavor as well as leaving enough space for the piece of cheesecake that he had been eyeing on the menu. When the waiter came back for desert orders, he jumped on the chance and waited anxiously as the cake was brought out to him, the rest of his squad getting other sugary delights. Like the steak, he took the time to savor each bite, watching as the others tore through the food without a worry. He realized that a lot of it probably stemmed from the fact that after having been out on a mission he knew how quickly death could find you and that this very well could be the last good meal he had. Remembering what Katana had said earlier, he refrained from falling into self-pity and instead used each remaining bit to celebrate the fact that he had survived two encounters with the enemy and had walked away almost completely unscathed. It seemed like everything was over in an instant, though, as the check came and he charged it to the UNSC's account.

"What's everyone else planning?" Dagger asked, slapping his hands on his knees. "I was thinking about trying to get into one of those clubs further down the strip, see what happens."

"Might just take a wake," Claymore said with a shrug of his shoulders. Dagger glanced over at Luke and Katana but Luke just shrugged his shoulders as well and Katana remained silent, glancing in Luke's general direction. He seemed to get the hint as he smiled and got up.

"Well everyone have fun." Claymore followed a minute later, leaving the two of them alone at the table.

"Let's go over there, dance around a little before we head back." Luke didn't move as he weighed the offer in his head but made up his mind when she grabbed his hand and started to pull him up. Relenting, he got up and followed her as they walked through the indoor dining area and towards the bar. A single bouncer in a skin tight shirt stood in front of the door with his guest list in hand. The man would normally be considered a large man with bulging muscles and a solid frame but when Luke came up next to him with at least three inches on him and his pronounced muscles, the bouncer was dwarfed.

"Hey, any room in there for us?" He asked. The bouncer was obviously a civilian but he glanced at Luke's collar which sported a single silver bar on it.

"Yeah man. Keep up the good fight," he replied, extending his hand to Luke who shook it as they entered the club. Filled with people but not packed, it was mostly military personnel having drinks at the other bar or dancing with each other on the dance floor. The music had a good beat and he could feel Katana already swaying back and forth as they walked in, her hand now on his waist. She led him out to the dance floor and pulled him close as she pressed up to him and danced to rhythm of the music. They were easily the largest couple in the area and their imposing size drew a few stares but Luke ignored them and let himself have some fun. With their faces close, Katana brushed her nose against his cheek while she closed her eyes and smiled. Continuing like this for the rest of the song, she turned around so that her back was up against his stomach and she grabbed his hands and placed them on the tops of her thighs as they continued to dance against each other, her head nestled up against his right shoulder as she looked at him, their eyes locked. The heat of the lights beneath them, jumping from color to color as the bar remained a steady blue, caused them to perspire and she wrapped his arms around her stomach. Leaning down, he kissed her on the lips before traveling to her ear and down her neck while she closed her eyes and opened herself up as she twisted her neck away.

"Let's get out of here," she mouthed to him before pulling him off the floor. They hurried across the HIGHCOMM compound back towards one of the entrances of the Hive, anticipation of what they were going to do growing as they got closer. Maintaining composure as they went back to his quarters, they finally rushed in and locked the door as they proceeded to kiss each other.

"We shouldn't be doing this," he said in between breaths. "There are laws against an officer and an enlisted doing this."

"What are they going to do? Throw us in the brig?" she replied while pushing him towards his bunk. Laughing a little, he took his shirt off and tossed it to the side while she ran her hands across his chest. Pushing his chair away from his desk, she pushed him down onto his bed forcefully while straddling him. She pulled her top off and tossed it next to his, revealing a black sports bra underneath. This came off just as fast as she exposed herself and leaned down on top of him. He ran his hands up and down her bare back before moving to the front for a moment to explore before going to her back again.

"Nathan…shut off all sensors and kill these lights, please."

"_Of course…_" he replied with a sigh as the lights dimmed down on the two of them.


	20. Nothing Lasts

"Nothing Lasts"

A soft three tone alarm went off in Luke's ear and he opened his eyes instantly as he rolled over in his bunk to turn off the alarm and get ready for the day ahead of them. The small hologram was flashing 0700 at him and despite being tired he pushed himself up with one arm and started to shake the sleep from his eyes. His heart stopped when he felt a hand on his back and the adrenaline burst that flooded his system woke him up instantly as he looked back over his shoulder at Katana who was getting up as well, her hair ruffled and messy as it drooped over her face. He suddenly felt bad that he forgot that she was there but then he realized it wasn't that he forgot she was there, it's just that it felt so natural that he didn't even realize it. Ignoring the clock, he rolled onto his other side so that he was facing her, pulling some of the gray sheets that were tossed everywhere up to cover himself. Tracing shapes from her neck down the small of her back and then some, she let herself back down onto the bed and brushed the hair out of her face and stared at him with her blue eyes.

"Good morning," he said quietly as he smiled at her.

"Good morning," she whispered back, pushing the pillow away from her mouth to flash him one of her leg-numbing smiles.

"Last night was good."

"Yeah…it was. I think you and I both knew it was going to happen so it's nice we finally dropped the walls," she said, rolling onto her side as well. Luke nodded his head as he pulled his lips tight, thinking of something to say in response.

"I think that…despite having done this, we still need to stay separate. It won't be like before, and I'm really sorry for that immature shit while I ignored you and stuff. But for now, let's just look at it as two friends having fun and letting off some steam." It was Katana's turn to remain silent as she looked away from him but there wasn't any serious change in her face as she thought.

"I agree," she said quietly, almost hesitantly at first. "It's in the open between us." Luke nodded and leaned down to kiss her on the cheek before he got up and began to get dressed. Katana waited for him to start before she finally rolled out of bed and walked around in the nude as she collected her clothes and started to put them on. Neither one of them really spoke but there weren't any hard feelings as they moved about the room, finally coming together when they were both dressed. Katana wrapped her arms around his waist and leaned back a little while smiling, Luke's enormous arms holding her up with no effort. She finally pulled herself up and they kissed while trying to stop a few times before she finally put her finger on his lips before she left the room.

* * *

Standing between two brushed metal walls in the officer's bathroom, Luke let the steam rise up and envelop his body as the hot water streamed down his body into the drain at his feet. He had awarded himself an extra long shower and was making sure to absorb every moment of it. Pulling the white curtain across the stall as a female officer walked past with a towel pulled up to her chest, he put his right arm up against the aqua green tiles and let the water run off his hair as he stared off absent-mindedly. He took the time to collect his thoughts and make sense of what had happened the night before and concluded that Katana and he definitely had a connection but, like they had discuss back during training, it'd had to take a back seat to their missions. But this time they seemed to both be on the same page which made everything feel right, something that hadn't been there prior to their escapades the night before.

"_Soldier, I have an incoming transmission from Captain Ambresio_," Nathan said through the small intercom located above the shower head.

"Alright, patch it through." Standing up and turning the water off, he grabbed his towel and wrapped it around his waist while the channel switched over.

"_Lieutenant, this is Captain Ambresio. The _Kamiak_ has been given deployment orders and we'll be leaving Sydney in five hours. You'll be departing on the last bird with me and anyone else who is still on the surface, same place as always."_

"Yes sir, we'll be there." The channel went dead a few seconds later and Luke remained in the shower, holding his towel up. Patrol wasn't exactly what he wanted to hear but it meant that nothing major was happening in the colonies or with the Covenant which was a blessing. Drying himself off, he put his uniform on and headed back to his quarters to drop his items off before he headed to the rest of his team. He felt sorry for them for having to actually observe their ranks while planet side but as he walked into the enlisted quarters he saw that they weren't as bad as he though, six people sharing a rather large space by military standards. When he entered, the three Marines who were rooming with the other Tempests snapped to attention, shocked at the presence of an officer. "At ease," he said as he waved his hand towards them while walking towards Dagger who was standing up in front of Claymore and Katana who were laying in their bunks, Katana on the top. Putting his hand on Dagger's back, he nudged him to the side so that he could speak to them as quietly as possible.

"What's up boss?" Claymore asked, sitting up in his bed.

"The captain just got a hold of me. The Kamiak just got her orders and we're shipping out soon. Less than five hours, to be exact."

"Well that was short lived," Dagger commented with a little bitterness in his voice.

"Yeah, but we're not in the Navy to party every night and not earn our pay," Luke rebutted as he glanced over at Dagger. "Get everything together fast and then do a full cleaning of your armor, even if you did one yesterday. Once we're off this rock we could be attacked at any moment and we need to be ready to go instantly." The three of them nodded at his advice. Nodding slowly, he rapped his knuckles on the metal bunk a few times before he walked out.


	21. Needle in a Haystack

"Needle in a Haystack"

_From: "Trisha Allara" allara_.mil_

_To: "Sword A80-427" sword_.mil_

_"Hey There"_

_How's the tour going? I haven't been keeping track of your mission as much as I'd like but I've heard a few whispers here and there. Earth is pretty calm at the moment, people are getting the feeling that it's a calm before the storm, that something is coming our way pretty soon but they don't know what. I'd don't really prescribe to that but then again I've always been an optimist, lol. How is Nathan doing for you? I scanned over some of the logs from your mission on the Kendreth and it seemed like you guys hit it off pretty well. I need to get back to work though, the whole 'saving humanity' thing can't wait forever!_

_-Trish_

_Scanned remotely by ONI security systems on 22 July 2549 at 17:35:14. Delivered 24 July 2549 at 09:12:58._

_Dear Dr. Allara_

_The tour is fine. You're right though, it's been quiet. Captain Ambresio said that the last time it was like this was during the first years of the war when the Covenant seemed to attack only when the stumbled across us, not out hunting us. He's worried some of the younger recruits (It's weird not considering myself "young") are going to get complacent because they think the Covenant are getting low on reserves or they're losing the stomach to fight. I'm sure we'll see who's right soon enough. In case you were wondering, the rest of the squad is doing well. We're all a little bored and there's only so much to do on a ship that's sneaking around but once we get into combat we'll probably be changing our tune. Anywho…I'm going to end it here. Looking forward to your emails. Sword_.

Luke pushed himself away from the computer terminal and shut the screen off as the message was beamed back to Earth. It would most likely take a few days to get there unless the ship's communication computer attached it to a higher priority message. He was happy that the doctor was maintaining contact with him while they were away, sometimes sending pictures of things she saw or snippets of articles that she read, just things to keep the squad occupied during the trip. Sitting in his quarters he had nothing to do as they made yet another Slipspace jump to a location where Covenant forces might have been recently, sensor buoys picking up whispers as the ships jumped past. It felt like a game of cat and mouse but Luke wasn't sure who was who in the equation. Unable to sleep, he pulled the chair away from his desk and put a comfortable pair of laced booties onto his feet and tucked his black shirt into his pants as he wandered into the halls. Ambresio had a nice little computer routine running that had the lights match the time of day on Earth to help with the long periods in Slipspace and the potentially long days on station. The jump was short enough that there was no need to go into cryo-sleep so he had the lights extra dark with just the inlaid ceiling lights casting a soft yellow glow on the walls. Heading towards the bridge, he passed by a blurry-eyed enlisted man who was either just getting off his shift or just getting onto it. Two Marines stood at attention as he walked onto the bridge, the lights dimmed as a single man stood staring into the darkness of Slipspace.

"Sir?" he said as he took a few steps in, not wanting to startle him.

"How are you supposed to protect my ship if you don't have any sleep?" he replied back, unmoving.

"I'll be fine, sir."

"I'm sure. What can I do for you Lieutenant?"Ambresio turned around and stepped away from the small view port of the _Kamiak_ and towards his chair in the center of the bridge, a number of consoles arranged on the sides along with the navigators in front and below him.

"Nothing particular, sir. I'm just not very tired and I figured you may want some company." The Captain seemed to weigh this for a second or two before he nodded and motioned towards one of the unused chairs. Luke went over and managed to fit his enormous frame into the small but comfortable chair and spun around as Ambresio faced him. "I got another e-mail from the doctor earlier, she said that everything is good back home."

"You two seem to have become quite the pen pals lately," he replied.

"It's nice to get outside of the echo chamber sometimes. Talking to a bunch of military types who experience the same thing as you day after day gets a little tiring after a while."

"I understand. My brother was a civilian contractor and he and I talked frequently until he was killed. It's nice to have that connection to the outside world when you're out here, gives you something tangible to fight for." Luke nodded slowly in understanding.

"If I may…why do you think things have been so calm lately? I can't think of a time where we had so few Covenant attacks or even skirmishes." Ambresio contorted his face when Luke asked and he shifted slightly in his seat as he searched for an answer.

"My gut is telling me they're getting ready for something big. The Covenant may be stronger in every way but they still need time to maneuver and prepare their resources for large scale battles. The Inner Colonies are all that's left and we're being condensed down so the fighting is going to get vicious soon. Let's just hope they don't stumble across Earth accidently."

"How quickly do you think the UNSC would collapse if Earth fell?"

"Fast. There'd be no central command structure in place anymore and very few commanders in the field would know the entirety of the UNSC deployment and war planning. I'm sure ships will begin jumping out to the most remote colonies to try and wait it out. Who knows…maybe they'll survive this whole ordeal." Ambresio seemed to trail off when he finished, looking away from Luke and instead glancing at the bridge of his ship and the different screens that glowed dimly.

"There's no way I could surrender like that. I've encountered them firsthand and they've already killed someone close to me."

"Son, you're absolutely-."

"_Captain! I'm detecting an enormous Slipspace anomaly dead ahead. Dropping the _Kamiak_ out of Slipspace…now_!" Machiavelli, the ship's AI appeared on every holotank on the bridge as his voice was projected over the speakers. Red alarms blared and Ambresio was up and on his feet instantly, running to his chair which he slid into and began to strike holographic keys on the armrests. As all of this was happening, the black outside of the ship was replaced with millions of stars and a dead and rocky planet out to their right, illuminated by a star that was further out of their field of vision. Luke slowly got up out of his seat as his eyes settled on the scene directly in front of them. Glistening bright purple in the starlight was an enormous Covenant fleet floating stationary near the planet. The four largest ships were sitting in the center of the group, the crafts having three distinct bulbous sections with the front nose being much large than the rest of the body while hooking back under itself. Surrounding the largest ships of the fleet were a large amount of ships about half the size and much thinner, a number of fins extending from the rounded nose section, a set of two engines glowing brightly in the rear section. The smallest ships floated on the outside of the battle group, about four times as small as the largest ships and consisting of a single bulbous section in the front with a small body on the back with two sets of vertical wings on either side of it.

"Oh…my god…" Luke said as he took a few steps forward, stunned at what he was seeing. Other bridge crew came running in as he was walking around and he moved out of the way so that they could do their jobs.

"_I'm detecting four CKM-Class Assault Carriers, 13 CCS-Class Cruisers, and 26 CPV-Class Frigates_."

"This ship hardly has the firepower to take on one of those Frigates let alone an entire god damn fleet! Machiavelli, I want us running silent. Shut down all sensors aside from the bare minimum you need."

"_You've got it Captain_."

"Sir, I'm going to suit up," Luke said as he turned to leave the bridge.

"Son, what the hell do you expect to do? I appreciate the enthusiasm but we're sitting this one out. No one is going to die to today." Luke clenched his fists but stopped himself from leaving, walking back towards to the Captain and standing beside him. Sweat was beginning to appear on Luke's skin as he tensed up while looking at the fleet in front of him, unable to do anything. Ambresio brought the _Kamiak_ to a stop as it lurked thousands of miles away from Covenant fleet. The fact that none of them broke formation seemed to indicate that they hadn't been detected yet and were free to figure out what a fleet of this size was doing in the middle of nowhere. Breathing slowly to keep calm, the bridge was deadly silent as everyone looked out into space at the enemy that was arrayed in front of them.

"_Captain, I'm currently attempting to hack into their BattleNet but at this distance the signal is weakening. I have located a position that should allow me to double the strength but keep us in out of sensor range_."

"Do it," Ambresio replied tensely, his navigators who had just arrived moments earlier bringing the ship to the coordinates. "Let's get a message prepared to send to FLEETCOMM to warn them about this, we'll send updates as we go. Drop a sensor buoy and bring me to the dark side of the planet, I don't want us out here in the open any longer than we have to."

"Aye, Captain," the navigator responded as the ship continued towards Machiavelli's coordinates to drop the buoy off before moving back behind the planet. As the edged in closer they could see a few of the ships shifting their position slightly which made Luke's heart jump but they seemed to just be repositioning themselves and quickly fell back in line with the others. Feeling and itch on his foot, he knelt down to stick his finger into his shoes to scratch it.

"God damn't!" Ambresio yelled out and Luke jumped back up to see what happened. It took him a second to realize what had happened but it quickly hit him like a brick. The entire fleet was missing save for a single one of the small Frigates that was sitting on the outskirts. "Where'd they jump!?" he yelled out, standing up out of his seat.

"Numbers are still coming in, sir, I need a little bit more time," someone to Luke's left responded uneasily. Seconds passed as the data streamed in and Machiavelli and the other computers worked overtime to cram the numbers. "Ok…ok…c'mon you son of a bitch, give me something…got it!" Everyone on the bridge turned around when the tech cried out. "Judging by the jump vector they're most likely head towards Paris IV."

"That's a major population center…the fleets there might be able to stall but they're not going to be able to hold for long. Machiavelli, I want you to send a message out to every nearby planet and ship warning them about the fleet. Before you do that, crunch some numbers and get an estimated ETA for their arrival and package that in."

"_Of course_," the AI responded.

"Let's stay focused people, we still have a Frigate here and I want to know why it stayed behind."

"Sir, I'm detecting a large amount of radiation spewing from the ship as well as multiple hull breaches which are venting atmosphere. She's in bad shape," another officer replied from his console. With the _Kamiak _near the planet, it came around to face the frigate as it sat in space, the faint glowing of plasma visible on the black backdrop.

"For once we may actually have an advantage over these bastards," Ambresio said. "Warm up the Archer pods and bring the SHIVAs online as well. Fire off two pods of Archers to mask the warheads. I'll be taking manual control of this ship from here on out." The bridge erupted into a flurry of activity as the call to general quarters was made and the lights in the bridge dimmed. Luke looked around to try and figure out what he was going to do but as he looked towards the entrance to the bridge he could see that the door had been locked shut.

"There's a jump seat near the Captain," a young woman said when she noticed him unsure of where to go. Walking back towards the Captain he saw the seat nestled into a wall and flipped it down and took a seat.

"Do we have targeting solutions yet?" Ambresio asked as he sat back down into his chair, putting the straps over his chest but not tightening them yet. His hands rested on two black sticks that had risen up out of the seat, a number of different buttons located on them.

"Aye sir, weapons are ready to fire," the weapons officer replied back from the starboard side of the bridge.

"Alright, stagger the SHIVAs and aim for the rear section, let's try and cripple them right here. Fire on my mark." Luke's heart began to beat faster as they were about to fire off the missiles. Something on the ship started to change though and it began to turn towards them.

"Sir! They know we're here!"

"Lieutenant Clarence! Fire those missiles!" Ambresio called out. A second later, sixty missiles leapt out of their pods and streaked past the bridge on their way towards the ship quickly followed by a large SHIVA warhead and then another. The _Kamiak_ didn't stick around for long as it rolled port and headed back towards the star and the planet, golden light filtering into the bridge before the windows polarized.

"We've got multiple detonations along the shielding…warhead impacted on the shields!" Clarence replied. "No response from the second nuke, might've been taken out by their defenses." As the _Kamiak_ continued to pull port, the engines kicked up to full power and the ship aimed itself right towards the planet. The g-forces of the maneuver pushed Luke into his seat and he pulled the restraints over him and tightened them up. "Incoming fire!" A number of jolts rocked the ship as the frigate's shots impacted the rear of the _Kamiak_. Luke was expecting something more but they were relatively minor compared to the rocking that was caused by the forces beginning to be put on the ship.

"Uh…there are no breaches…the shots hit us but hull integrity is still at 100%," someone reported, the astonishment clear in their voice.

"Must've been their pulse lasers. They might not have enough energy to bring the big guns to bear," Ambresio responded. The _Kamiak_ was now only a few hundred miles away from the planet as the engines were brought to full power, the forces pushing Luke back into seat and causing him problems when he tried to breath. The black ship continued to hurtle over the planet, it's rocky and charred surface clearly visible from the main window. "Deploy MORAY mines now."

"Aye sir, deploying mines." They couldn't see it but hundreds of the small metallic orbs were ejected from the rear of the _Kamiak_ and began to arrange themselves into a large cloud of explosive ordinance. They remained in contact with the ship to use it's sensors as they continually moved to intercept the Covenant ship which was quickly catching up to them.

"_Captain, may I ask what you're doing_?" Machiavelli asked.

"Sure, I'm going to slingshot us around the planet and come in behind these bastards and put another salvo into the damaged rear. That's the plan at least. Please drop a sensor buoy and target it towards the minefield, I want to see what they're doing." A few seconds passed before an image appeared on one of the side displays where it initially showed the _Kamiak_ flying away before rotating around towards the Covenant ship. It was just beginning to come towards the planet while the _Kamiak_ was beginning to make the slingshot maneuver around the backside. The g-forces continued to increase as Luke tried to keep his breathing under control and body upright. Focusing on the screen he saw the ship enter the minefield as a hundred small explosions boiled over the skin of the ship, the flashes of orange and white flickering for a second before disappearing. As it continue through the field the other mines activated their engines and launched themselves towards the ship as sporadic explosions lit up the rear portions of the ship.

"_Based on my calculations, our speed will require us to fire the missiles before we've sighted the ship on our return trajectory. I'm still getting a final set of firing solutions,_" Machiavelli said. The _Kamiak_ continued to hurdle along the opposite side of the planet as the ship, a violent vibrating engulfing the entire ship as it was pushed to it's limits and then shoved even harder past them. The whole time Ambresio was completely calm as his hands deftly moved the ship in the direction that he wanted although he guessed Machiavelli was doing some of the work behind the scenes. Continuing around Luke was beginning to feel sick to his stomach as they passed their original entry point to the planet and began their second trip. Looking ahead back towards the star as he felt the content of his stomach rising to his throat, the Covenant ship wasn't visible but faint trails of atmosphere and plasma still lingered in space. "_Firing missiles_." The contents of the Archer pods emptied as hundreds of missiles streaked away from the ship and hurtled around the planet, two more SHIVAs following behind. The white trails curled towards the surface of the planet, a number of them exploding as they hit the atmosphere and burned up. Still, a majority made it through and continued around the horizon towards an unknown target. Finally, the purple metal of the ship became visible as the _Kamiak_ came around, the Covenant stopping and coming back around to presumably take them head on. However, the missiles were ready for them as they continued on their trajectory. The first few began to impact, then more and more until the entire rear was engulfed in flames from the hundreds of missiles impacting the engines and hull. Then the first warhead hit. A blinding flash of white light engulfed the ship as the engines were obliterated and the rear section shredded itself, plasma and atmosphere spewing everywhere. Debris was flung in all different directions as the lights flickered and dimmed along the sides and inside breaks on the hull. The second warhead detonated a few seconds later, obliterating what was left of the ship, a cloud of tiny pieces of metal spewing in all different directions before a third explosion went off as the reactor detonated. Still carrying an enormous amount of speed, the _Kamiak_ tore past the debris field towards the star as it began to fire it's retrorockets in the front to slow down. Unable to hold it any longer, Luke leaned over to his left and emptied the contents of his stomach onto the floor, coughing and sputtering after it was over.

"Don't worry son, it happens to everyone after their first time," Ambresio said with a laugh at the end, obviously letting the tension out after the ordeal.

"I'm not really sure what got to me, either the flying around or the whole fighting a Covenant ship," he replied, wiping some vomit away from his face.

"_Based on your stress patterns and the g-forces that were being applied to your body, both would've had a likely impact_," Machiavelli interjected awkwardly.

"Alright, that was one ship out of a helluva lot more," Ambresio said loudly, regaining composure. "I want a combat report written up and forwarded to FLEETCOMM. Let's get teams down to the rear of the ship and make sure we didn't miss anything when they hit us and we're alright. Navigation…bring us around and let's make a jump to Paris IV."

* * *

"Jesus! What happened? I wake up to alarms blaring and a Marine comes by and tells us to stay in our quarters!" Dagger said, emoting wildly while walking in the center of their room as Katana leaned up against a bulkhead and Claymore sat in one of the bunk beds. Luke stood in front of the room, the calm back in his body after watching the fight from the front row.

"We jumped into a Covenant fleet. Big one, something like forty ships were just sitting there. All of them jumped and they left behind a ship that was damaged so the Captain engaged it and destroyed it," Luke responded. "We lured them into the planet's gravity well and used it to slingshot around and come in behind them before firing off some nukes and other missiles."

"So where are we headed now?" Katana asked, finally speaking since the group had convened.

"Paris IV. Judging by their coordinates the fleet is headed there so we're on our way to help them out. If the planet is still there when we arrive we'll be going groundside immediately." Claymore and Dagger let huge smiles creep across their faces when they heard this but Katana remained expressionless. "Just be ready when we finish this jump because we'll be hitting the ground running."


	22. Prepare to Drop

"Prepare to Drop"

Red and yellow lights spun wildly as a calm alarm called out over hidden speakers throughout the drop pod hangar. Four rows of HEV drop pods were arranged back to back with five of the pods sitting at a slanted angle in each row. Luke and his Tempests arrived on the sole elevator that they had crammed into, their backpacks filled with a few anti-personnel mines, grenades, and spare magazines while their bodies were covered in a number of knives, pistols, and sub-machine guns. Both Luke and Dagger were wielding a standard BR55 while Claymore had the experimental BR55 SAW variant which incorporated a longer barrel and a receiver designed to accept a drum magazine. Katana was hefting the SRS99C S2-AM along with plenty of ammo for the rifle to help keep the pressure off of the team when they were on the surface. Before departing for the HEV bay, Captain Ambresio spoke to Luke over a private channel to give him a better idea of the situation. Thankfully their message had gotten out to nearby fleets and the Humans had managed to coordinate some sort of a resistance which, remarkably, had created a stalemate in the space battle over the planet. But that wasn't Luke's focus; at least not at the moment. The Covenant ships had deployed a large amount of drop ships to the surface and the cities were being overrun. Their mission was to protect one of the main space ports so that they could get as many civilians off the planet's surface as possible. A Marine detachment had already set up positions and was encountering light resistance from the first few Covenant patrols harassing the refugees and they were dropping in to reinforce the lines until further notice.

Stepping out of the elevator, the drop bay technician motioned for him towards one of the pods as the door opened up.

"Sir, have you ever used one of these before?" he asked frantically as he stared into a screen and tapped a few buttons.

"No," Luke replied as he forced himself into the tight space between pods.

"Don't worry about it, these things fly themselves." Luke put his rifle into a lock on the side of the pod and forced himself inside with his armor and gear taking up every free inch of space inside the coffin. The technician put in a few commands on the console outside of the pod and a second later the sound of hydraulic whining signaled the door closing as it locked into place, hissing following as the atmosphere was equalized inside. Inside was a single chemical light over his head along with a few cheap looking screens on the sides which gave information such as altitude, speed, orientation, and others.

"Comm check," Luke said into his radio as the other filed into their pods. Three acknowledgment lights popped up over his radar and he shifted a little to try and ignore the butterflies that were welling up in his stomach. It didn't take more than a minute for the rest of his squad to get situated.

"_Sir, we'll be deploying in ten seconds. Prepare to drop_." Taking hold of the hand grips and squeezing them tightly, he counted down in his head from ten until there was a jerk and he felt the pod lower through the tube before stopping with another jerk. A moment later there was a much more violent jerk followed by a soft shaking as the pod's rockets fired and it began it's descent to the surface. Adrenaline was racing through Luke's veins as the pod continued to hurtle towards the surface, jerking back and forth as it corrected it's course. His breathing was heavy and labored from the forces being put on his body and put his head back to try and calm himself a little bit. The ride continued for a few more seconds before the shaking became more violent and the sound of air resistance roared around him. Plasma licked at the small windows on the front of the pods as he entered the atmosphere and the friction built up. The walls began to warm to a light orange color as layers of armor plating melted off of the outside of the pod and his armor began to compensate for the heat as sweat began to bead on his back and forehead. As suddenly as the violent shaking began, the plasma washed away and the only sound was of the wind resistance against the bottom of the pod which had begun to creak loudly from the heat dissipation. He was startled when there was a loud bang but he glanced over at the screens and saw that the parachute had deployed as he felt the pod slowly down drastically. This went on for a few seconds before there was another bang and the drag flaps released and pod continued the rest of the way down.

"Brace! Brace! Brace!" a computerized voice called out as the pod continued dropping. A few seconds later the pod slammed into the ground with a bone-rattling shake as the bottom layers compressed into the dirt. Silence quickly followed but was interrupted as the explosive rivets fired off before two large charges blew the crumpled door away from the pod and into the darkness. Grabbing his rifle, Luke jumped out of the pod and dashed away from it before dropping to a knee, rain pouring down around him into ground that was already soaked from what looked like days of rain earlier. Inside his helmet he could hear the ticking of the enormous rain drops as they splashed off of the armor plating and sliding down his legs into the dirt. Looking up into the sky, Luke could see the rest of his squad coming down but they seemed to be much further away from him and near where the space port was.

"_It appears we've missed the drop zone by quite a distance,_" Nathan said. "_I'm calculating a route to get you back to the drop zone now_."

"God damn't," Luke cursed under his breath, still scanning the tree line across from him. A haze was setting in as the rain continued to come down heavily on the poplar trees around him. He turned on enhanced vision mode and a second later, everything was outlined with a faint blue light which helped him see what was around him beyond the haze and the darkness. Satisfied that there weren't Covenant forces in the area, he stood up and began to moved towards the other side of the clearing, hunched over slightly as he activated his camo and disappeared into the night. He pushed his way into the woods which protected him from the rain a little bit although it was purely mental as the suit was hermetically sealed from the environment.

"_Hey boss, what happened_?" Dagger radioed.

"I'm not sure, my pod veered off course so I'm making my way towards the space port now. I want you to lead the squad there and start getting an idea of what's going on because there's no reason they need to wait for all four of us to get a defense established."

"_Roger that. We're on our way to the space port now_." Dashing over a swollen stream that was flooding the spongy ground around it, Luke landed into a pile of mud that covered the bottom parts of his calves in mud which messed with his mind for a few seconds as he saw the floating splatters of dirt moving with him. Pushing a few small bushes out of the way he was afforded a little leeway in his stealth thanks to the pouring rain producing a constant stream of rusting leaves and moving branches. Up ahead he saw the trees and brush lighten up and give way to an endless expanse of swaying fields although the haze was severely obstructing his view. He could see that the trees were part of a small grove that was left standing in the middle of the field, not unlike the small preserves that were mandated on his home planet. Reaching the edge of the field, he took a knee and brought the grass to chest height as he scanned the surroundings. Off in the distance he could see a bright glowing cluster of lights which he assumed belonged to the space port. Shifting his focus to the immediate surroundings, he was content with it's security and was about to dash into the field when he saw something dash across his field of vision. His suit picked it up and outlined one of the birdlike Jackals moving perpendicular to his position about thirty or forty yards out from him. Instinctively reaching for his silenced pistol he stopped himself knowing that the shot would be impressive even for himself and stopped. The Jackal stopped and remained hunched over in the field, a long purple gun gripped in his hands, unmistakably the Type-50 Beam Rifle. The Jackal assuredly had a Type-25 Plasma Pistol attached to it's hip which made for a nice dead zone that it would be unable to use the rifle on him or the pistol. Doing a quick check of his surroundings to make sure there was nothing else around him he pushed off the soft ground with his hand and began to sprint out to the Jackal. It only took a few seconds before he was within lunging distance of the creature but it had yet to spot him. Taking one final lunge, he came up behind the alien and grabbed it's right shoulder with his left hand and the end of it's bony beak and twisted with all his strength. In a single movement the Jackal's head nearly popped off it's shoulders as it's eyes rolled in different directions and it's body went limp. Luke was about to drop the body when a searing hot bolt of green energy splashed off his shoulder and back, quickly followed by another one. His golden shields flared up and the bar on his HUD dropped to nearly half while a soft alarm began to play. Reaching down to his waist he detached the pistol from it's magnetic grip and turned the alien body towards the source of the fire and looked for some sign of his attacker. Glowing in the grass were two green rectangles and a single purple light that was looking directly at him. Squeezing off two shots at the gun and a third at the head piece he saw them jerk and fall away. With his pistol still out he made his way over towards the body of the Jackal, it's purple blood oozing from the two wounds in it's chest and the third just off center in it's head, barely missing the head gear on it's left eye. Putting a fourth round into it's chest just for safe keeping, he kicked the creature's rifle away from it's hands and examined the area. The Jackals were the Covenant's lead elements are were typically used to scout an area before an attack and then provide sniper fire once the attack was underway. And unlike the Jackals he encountered on the _Regrowth_, these were well equipped and seemed to be well trained; definitely part of the Covenant's regular army and not some pirate band. Looking over the equipment that they were carrying he found the same small object as before that seemed to locate him on the small screen it projected. Crushing it in his gauntlet he checked them for anything else but found nothing of use.

"_Judging by the Covenant BattleNet a few Spirits landed in this area but the troops they dropped off were quickly taken care of by UNSC and militia forces. I would guess that these Jackals were part of those same elements. So far the traffic regarding this area has remained steady but I would have to advise that the activity here will draw attention quickly._"

"Got it Nathan," Luke replied. He slapped his pistol back onto his hip and pulled his BR55 off of his back and fitted his silencer onto the end of the already long barrel. The crops reached up to his waist as he dashed through the fields, his head on a swivel while he kept an eye on his motion tracker which was pushed out to maximum range and sensitivity. As he neared the lights of the fence surrounding the space port he started to see a series of lights up in the sky which were blinking white and red. "What is that?"

"That would be the Madrigal Space Tether. It transports most of the crops from this region to ships in orbit," Nathan replied, the information coming up as if it had been prepared beforehand. Glancing back at the lights, Luke couldn't help but feel an eerie shiver down his spine as the dark silhouette of the enormous tether rose up from the flat plains. Ignoring his sight-seeing, he focused back on the space port which was quickly approaching. Coming to a small two lane road, the fields abruptly ended and were replaced by an expansive parking lot which was filled with what looked like thousands of refugees huddled around cars. Enormous halogen lamps were illuminating the entire area in bright white light, behind them the entire space port was laid out with the raised platforms filled with different types of ships which ranged from worn down freighters to brightly painted luxury liners, all of them bathed in the same bright white light. Turning off his camouflage, he hopped across the road and started to walk across the parking lot. The refugees on the fringes looked over at him with awe as they wiped the water off their faces and pointed excitedly.

"My god!" someone exclaimed and a few small children emerged from behind a sedan, gripping their parents' hands tightly. He looked over at them with his silver visor and smiled but he realized they wouldn't be able to see them and depressurized his suit.

"_Sword, one thing you should know. Covenant command has redirected all of the city's attacking forces to your location. I estimate the first units will reach you within forty-five minutes and are near battalion strength with possible reinforcements_." Wincing a little, he popped his helmet off and held it under his arm as he looked back at the kids and smiled again, flashing a thumbs up in their direction. The rain felt good on his head as it ran down through his short hair and across his face. As he was walking closer to the fence, the citizens stepping aside, their weary eyes gaining strength when they saw him. Finally he spotted a number of armed men dressed in what he assumed was the colonial militia uniform.

"Soldier!" he called out to them, putting his helmet back on to free his hand. They looked around a little before the spotted the hulking black shape walking towards them and they jumped up off of their Warthog with their weapons, their monocles glowing green over their left eyes.

"Sir?" one of them asked.

"We have inbound Covenant to this location, why are these people not getting onto these transports?" Luke asked over his external speakers.

"I-I'm not sure sir. Last I heard the ships had no destination and the pilots are refusing to take passengers or leave the surface until they know it's safe up there," he replied, referring to the space battle overhead. Luke wasn't sure who in their right mind would follow that line of thinking but he knew not to show any frustration around these soldiers.

"Alright. I want you to take your men and set up a perimeter out there," Luke said, pointing out to the clear areas of the parking lot. "The visibility isn't the greatest but we need to protect these people from the stragglers that are crawling around out there. I've already run into two Jackal snipers so keep your heads down until you need to do some fighting. Spread the word to your buddies." He nodded and ran back to his men and the Warthog drove off, the sound of other jeeps revving up around him. Moving in towards the fence, he could see that UNSC troops were stationed inside with their rifles at the ready, protecting the inside of the space port from a potential riot but from what Luke had seen in the crowd, they were quite docile and there didn't seem to be much threat of them causing problems. "Dagger, this is Sword, are you guys inside yet?"

"_Affirmative. We've linked up with the commander here but he's engaged in some…negotiations with the pilots at the moment. They're not-_."

"Yeah, I heard," he replied, cutting Dagger off. Luke finally spotted a gate and walked up to it, the Marines startled at seeing him. They opened the gate up without a word and he saw a sergeant off to the side of the gate speaking to another soldier. "Sergeant, where is your commander?" He looked over at Luke and sized him up before pointing down one of the roads leading between the landing pads, turning back to the soldier who was looking over information on a datapad. Making his way between the landing pads, their lights covered in steam as the rain drops landed on the blistering hot lamps and the exposed metal girders glistening, he finally saw a number of Warthogs gathered together near a small portable satellite and a tent that had been pitched. Luke's squad markers reappeared and he saw the three of them outside standing patiently.

"I don't give a _fuck_ what you do or do not want to do! You get into those god damn ships and start taking passengers before I have my men shoot every one of you in the head!" Luke could easily hear a man's voice over the general din of the ships and other things in the area. Looking into the tent he could see a collection of people huddled around a single man pacing back and forth.

"UNSC doesn't own us!" Someone yelled back at him. "I'm thinking of my ship and my life, not a bunch of random people!" Overhead a Pelican roared in, a Scorpion Main Battle Tank saddled to it's back; a thankful sight before the battle that was about to begin.

"Oh…oh…I'm sorry. I didn't know you had worked out a deal with those Covenant cocksuckers to get out of here alive!" Luke could see the two silver bars on the man's shoulders as he yelled back at whoever had spoke, a captain. He made his way over to Dagger and patted him on the shoulder lightly while looking at the other two. Switching over to their squad channel, he spoke to them.

"Nathan is telling me that the Covenant are on their way here now. Probably have about thirty minutes till the lead elements get here and we've still got all those people outside."

"_Yeah, it's bad_," Claymore responded, looking around a little bit.

"Ok, well I'm going to go an speak to this captain and get things rolling." Stepping away from them, Luke walked over to the entrance to the tent and ducked out of the rain as the pilots and the captain continued to argue. It took a few seconds before the officer noticed him.

"A fourth one of you?" he asked, surprised.

"Yes sir, I am Lieutenant Sword. What's the situation here?" All eyes had shifted to Luke and the pilots seemed to be a little hesitant as the captain began to speak, the name on his chest reading "Park."

"Well, these ships are the only way off the planet for these people and they're not going anywhere any time soon," he stopped for a second and eyed the pilots. "We've got about two hundred Marines taking up positions around the port with another hundred or so militia outside the fence."

"We have Covenant inbound to this position now, if those people aren't inside soon they'll be slaughtered, sir."

"I've been trying to convey that to these people for the past twenty minutes. If I had anyone who could fly the damn things I would've shot them already and gotten these people off the surface."

"Sir, my orders are to defend this space port until these people are safe. I'd like to take my squad and any other units you can spare to set up a perimeter defense until we can get the refugees onto those ships."

"Do what you need to. Sergeant Johnson should be just outside the tent with his squad." Luke saluted and walked out of the tent and motioned for his squad to follow him while also looking for the Sergeant that he had been directed to. Looking around he spotted a cluster of soldiers behind the tent and made his way towards them.

"Sergeant Johnson?" Luke asked when he walked up to them. All of the Marines jumped to attention as a tall man with dark skin turned around and saluted him.

"That's me, sir," Johnson replied with a deep and gruff voice.

"Alright, Captain Deer has assigned you to my team for the time being. We need to establish a perimeter while we get the refugees inside so we need to get as many mines as we can."

"Follow me," Johnson replied and he walked them towards an enormous stack of crates which were filled with different types of ammo and other equipment. The Sergeant took the lid off of one of the crates which were filled with stacks of anti-personnel mines, small plastic cylinders filled with high explosives and ball bearings in the front half of the mine. "This is all we've got with us, plus some ammo and grenades, a rocket or two. We're pretty low on ammo but I've had worse."

"Let's grab as many as we can, we don't have time." They found a few bags nearby and Luke filled his soaked backpack up with even more mines and set out with the Marines in tow. "When I came in I had some of the militia move out and set up a perimeter but these guys aren't going to be able to hold out for long. They probably came here from their cubicles. There are enough cars out there that we could use to set up some barriers."

"Got it." Luke glanced over at Johnson who's hulking frame was bulging out of his camouflage and armor plating didn't mask the scars that covered his bodies, signs of previous battles that he had been in. Arriving at the gates, they were still locked and the Marines were beginning to look agitated.

"Marines! Open these gates up, I want these people inside the compound as fast as you physically can."

"Yes sir!" one of them replied, pulling the lock off and swinging the gates open as people hurried inside in a rushed but orderly manner. The four Tempest soldiers stood in the middle of the tide as the people gave them a few feet of distance as they walked by.

"Katana, you get set up with your sniper," he said over the squad channel. Glancing back she activated her camo which drew a number of gasps and cheers from refugees as she parted them gently. "Be careful alright? I'm counting on you to be my eyes and ears," he said in a direct channel to her.

"_Don't worry Sword, I'll always be watching over you guys._" Smiling a little he left the compound with the five Marines and Dagger and Claymore. Already the parking lot was much emptier and the cars were waiting there for them to use while the militia soldiers sat a little further out with their antiquated gear.

"Push all of these cars forward to that point," he called out over his speakers while looking at his men, motioning towards a sedan that was about two thirds of the way away from the compound. "Flip any that you can but just create some sort of barrier…we're going to need the cover."

"Don't worry Lieutenant, you can hide behind me if you want," Johnson quipped in his deep voice before laughing heartily. Luke couldn't help but smile behind his visor as he turned to push a car out towards his designated barrier. For him, the car was almost weightless and he easily pushed it up against the sedan before he moved off to another car so that they could create a barrier for cover. Glancing back at the gate he could see a number of Marine squads moving out of the space port out towards the perimeter. A few of them were lugging out AIE-486H Heavy Machine Guns, large tri-barreled mounted weapons that could spit out 600 armor piercing rounds a minute, something even the Elite's shield technology couldn't withstand for long. Others had large olive drab crates of ammo that they brought out to the largest cluster of Marines. The Captain hadn't updated him on the situation but it seemed like a good sign that they were being reinforced on the line.

"_Satellite imaging is showing that the Covenant have stopped their advance about two miles out. It appears they have three Wraiths supporting the infantry as well as a number of Ghosts._"

"Nathan, speak to Captain Ambresio and see if they can divert any sort of air support to us, preferably with some armor piercing weapons," Luke replied.

"_Will do_." It only took a few more minutes for the barrier to take shape in a rough form, the cars and abandoned items forming a half circle around the space port from one side of the fence to the other. A few machine guns had been set up at different locations along the wall which would help keep the infantry at bay. Unfortunately he hadn't seen more than a few M19 rocket launchers and all of the mines were anti-personnel which would do little to no damage to the heavily armored Wraiths. He stopped for a second and was almost embarrassed that he forgot about the Scorpion that he had seen being dropped off.

"Captain Deer," he called out over the command channel.

"_This is Deer_," he replied back a few seconds later.

"Sir, I've seen satellite images showing at least three pieces of Covenant armor. I saw a Scorpion delivered earlier and I'm requesting it up here with us."

"_Granted. I'm transferring the call sign to you now_." A second later the tank's radio popped up on Luke's HUD and he switched channels to speak to the tank pilot.

"I need you to move your tank to the front gate of the space port but keep it hidden, Covenant armor is moving into our position and you're our only anti-armor."

"Roger that Lieutenant," the female responded, catching Luke off guard. Still more Marines had come out of the compound and Luke estimated that there were at least a hundred Marines reinforcing the hundred or so militia that were already set up. He looked back towards one of the buildings nestled in the center of the compound had a number of large windows where the refugees could be inside. Spreading out from it were a number of catwalks filled with more people who were making their way out to the different landing pads. Glad to see that they were getting onto the ships, he turned back to the defenses.

"_Sword, I've got a visual on the Covenant and they're moving now_," Katana said into his ear.

"They're on their way," said, leaning over towards Johnson who was checking over his soldiers.

"Then I guess it's time to show them what they're in for. I'll spread the word." Pulling out his BR55, Luke unscrewed the silencer and tossed it into one of his pockets. "Dagger, Claymore?"

"Yeah?" Dagger responded as Luke remained stationary, checking his gun.

"I want you two to split up and reinforce other parts of the perimeter. Just be prepared to be moving back and forth as needed because they'll probably be trying to find our weak spot." Two acknowledgement lights winked on and the two super soldiers dashed off in separate directions. Chambering a new round, Luke prepared himself for the battle to come.


	23. Holding the Line

"Holding the Line"

A single shot rang out as a Grunt waddled out of the cornfields and onto the road. The round sailed through it's head and sent blood and water up into the air before it collapsed awkwardly onto it's methane tank. Luke readjusted his hand after squeezing the trigger, steam boiling off the end of the barrel from his shot. There was nothing for the sound waves to echo off of so the shot faded away as the sound of the ships powering up and the rain coming down was the only thing that he could hear. Flicking the fire selector back to three round burst he waited for the rest of the Covenant force to make it's way out into the open. Shifting his weight slightly, he looked down at a rippling puddle for a second, bowing his head slightly. A solid thud against the sedan he was using for cover caught his attention as he saw the glowing hole in the skin from where a Beam Rifle lanced through it. Ducking down and rolling off to the side, he activated his camo and popped back up to try and figure out where the shot had come from.

"That's badass…where can I can buy that?" a Marine remarked nervously as Luke scanned the fields for the sniper. He activated his enhanced vision but the stalks were obscuring his vision too much and he turned it back off. In the darkness he saw what looked like a solid wall of green and orange light beginning to emerge.

"Jackals!" someone yelled out and Luke reappeared, not wanting to hide around the Marines who would be looking to his squad as a source of strength. The Jackals had formed a phalanx with their shields and were advancing closer to their perimeter, shielding more forces who were assuredly ducking behind the solid wall. The staccato gunfire of the MA5Bs began to fill the air as the soldiers opened fire, their rounds impacting the shields with no effect, pinging off the energy shields and back into the soil. The shield wall emerged from the fields and out into the open just as one of the M41 LAAGs mounted on the Warthogs spun up, spitting out up to 900 rounds per minute. The 12.7x99mm rounds quickly overloaded the shields and they burst as the Jackal carrying it nearly exploded in a cloud of blood as the rounds shredded their meager armor. Behind them were a number of Grunts who were taken down just as fast before the guns swung to other areas of the shield wall. With the rear echelons exposed the Marines were able to start pouring gunfire into the Grunts who jerked back and forth before dropping to the ground, their fluorescent blood glowing brightly in the night. Luke fired off controlled bursts at the small aliens' heads as they emerged onto the road, their small pistols firing wildly at the cars which creaked and groaned from the superheated rounds impacting them. Just as he was about to get into a rhythm he was startled by a hulking shape emerging from behind the shields, firing precisely aimed shots at the soldiers. The Elite gave out a cry as it's Plasma Rifle whined while firing a number off a number of blue bolts of plasma. The shots found their marks on a number of targets as the Marines fell to the ground screaming, grabbing their bodies as the seared flesh nearly fell off of them. Others fell instantly as enormous holes burned through their bodies and they dropped to the ground silently. Luke immediately shifted his focus to the Elite and fired off what was left of his magazine into the enormous alien, it's shields flashing up silver before blowing off as the other Marines focused their fire on him. A few seconds later it whined and yelped as it gripped it's chest, his purple blood mixing with the water streaming off it's shoulders before the alien fell to the ground. Around him the Grunts started to panic and could be seen nudging their comrades forward into the maelstrom as more and more fell. Luke knew that while they were easily able to manage the Grunts and Jackals being thrown at them they were only being softened up. Just looking around he could see that they already had a number of wounded and dead. With the last few Covenant dead there was a lull as everyone reloaded and centered themselves. Standing behind the car he could feel the anxiety of the Marines clearly.

"Stay calm, I want you to be thinking clearly," he said softly to those around him.

"It's easy for you to say sir; you've got all that armor and those shields. It's just me and a few plates of titanium," one of them replied.

"Just makes me a bigger target," Luke replied back with a quiet chuckle. "I'm relying on you to take them down."

"Fair enough."

"_I've got eyes on targets moving towards your position,_" Katana whispered into his ear.

"Thanks. Save your ammo for the Elites, we'll take down the little guys ourselves." He knew that the first wave was nothing more than an intelligence gathering mission. Covenant commanders were just sizing up the resistance and deciding if they should all out attack or keep the pressure on steadily. Either way it was a matter of time before they'd break through their line and come into the space port. A few seconds later he got his answer when Grunts and Jackals poured out of the fields again. This time they were moving in squads led by Elites who were brutally pushing them forward as the gun fire erupted. The plasma fire was heavy and a few stray bolts splashed off his shields, bringing them down to half before the golden waves came across his body and they recharged. Firing burst after burst at the Grunts and Jackals, he saw a thin white contrail appear in the air, ending where an Elite's head used to be, now a cloud of blood and brain as it collapsed to the ground. Grenades were exchanged as the bright blue plasma grenades bounced off of cars before detonating while the olive drab frag grenades arced overhead and sent pillars of limbs and mud into the air when they went off. Focusing on an Elite wearing red armor and seeming to command many of the smaller squads which were using the shield carrying Jackals as portable cover, Luke finally dropped his shields and put two more bursts into it's head as it gripped it's mangled mandibles, blood pouring from it's face. Turning to face him, he leveled the large purple Type-51 Carbine and sent a number of glowing green radioactive rounds at him, bringing his shields all the way down as the last few rounds slammed into his armor. Dropping behind cover as alarms blared in his ears, he looked down at his chest to see one of them embedded into the black armor. Grabbing the glowing green mushroom shaped round, he tossed it aside, ignoring the pain from their impacts. As his shields recharged he jumped up and fired more bursts at the Elite whose shields weren't up yet. Purple blood sprayed out of him as he jerked back and forth from the impacts before finally taking a round in the neck, it's blood spraying out and pouring over his hands. Reloading, he saw that a number of squads were near some of the mines and watched as their sensors activated and went off. A bright orange flash lit up the area as the white hot ball bearings sailed away from the explosion, cutting through shields and armor without problem. The Elite in the group had it's left arm torn off but continued to fire it's Plasma Rifle for a few more seconds until a combination of enormous blood loss and the incoming fire dropped it. The fighting lasted for a few more minutes until the last of the squads had been taken down, just in time for another wave to arrive. Luke was about to turn towards one of the squads emerging from the field when a Carbine round snapped past and hit one of the Marines next to him. Still turning to see where it went, his left shoulder was sprayed with red blood as the soldier fell to the ground, both hands clutching his neck. Arterial spray forced it's way between his fingers as he gasped for air, the terror evident in his eyes as he trashed back and forth. Luke recognized him as the soldier who had commented on his armor earlier and immediately knelt down to see if there was anything he could do to help him. Simply changing his position gave him a clear view of how bad the wound was as blood pooled beneath the man, a deep red color that indicated he was pumping all of it out of his body and fast. Biofoam was useless as it would only suffocate him instead of letting him bleed out.

"You fought well!" Luke yelled out over the din of battle. "We'll make sure it wasn't in vain!" He felt a little awkward saying it but Luke knew he needed to say something to the man as the life bled out of him. One of the other Marines had knelt down next to him and was trying to do what he could to stop the bleeding despite it's futility. Luke didn't have time or the will to tell him to stop so he turned back to the fight, Human blood once again covering his armor. No matter how many they killed, more Covenant came out to replace them, more than willing to die if they were able to kill a single Human. Despite the numbers that they were facing he was impressed at how well they were standing up to the assault which was steadily producing casualties but they were far smaller than what the Covenant were taking. The optimism disappeared when the Covenant's assault vehicle, the Type-32 Ghost, made it's appearance as they emerged from the fields. Cutting swaths through the field they quickly began to strafe the perimeter with their twin cannons, destroying cars and a number of Warthogs as they came back and forth. Just as they began to harass the soldiers, much larger vehicles appeared on scene with turrets on the tops firing into the perimeter. Obviously troop transports of some kind, they had enormous rounded noses and two sets of wings on the front and back that it rested on before opening up as Elites poured out, most wearing blue armor while a few wore the distinct red color. Luke counted eight of the transports with about tent to fifteen Elites appearing from each. But right in front of them a transport stopped and unloaded a number of Elites wearing pitch black armor. All but one of them began moving to cover as they took fire from the remaining Warthogs and the Marines up on the vehicles. The one who didn't move for cover reached for it's hip and grabbed a small silver object and held it at it's side as an enormous white blade of energy erupted, the Elite roaring before pointing right at Luke. With amazing speed the Elite crossed the open ground and mounted the car as Luke took a few steps back. He immediately pulled out his combat knife with his left hand and extended his arm but was stunned for a second when the Energy Sword flashed in front of him and cut the blade in half, the front portion falling into a puddle while steam billowed off of the still white hot edge where it was cleanly cut. He didn't stay still for long when he reached out and grabbed the wrists of the Elite who leaned in towards Luke's visor and growled menacingly, it's breath clouding his visor for a second before it dissipated. The strength of the Elite was almost mind-boggling as it's arms remained solid bands of muscle that required Luke to flex with every ounce of strength which wasn't enough. Hissing louder and louder, the blade made a slow path towards his left shoulder as the rain hit the superheated energy and boiled away instantly.

"_Hold still, I'm going to try and take a shot_," Katana cried out in his ear. Luke didn't have any say in the matter as he shifted his stance so that he had a little more leverage than before. Letting out his own roar which seemed to startle the Elite, he summoned every ounce of his strength and began to push it's arms away as it's neck craned back, obviously straining under Luke's counter. Finally getting enough leverage, he pushed the Special Ops Elite back but he didn't get away unscathed. With no more resistance, the Elite's sword arm came down hard and the tips of the blades slashed through Luke's shields and cut right across his chest plate, a quarter inch gash sizzling red as he stumbled backwards and grasped at his chest which was on fire despite all of the protection.

"Fuck!" Luke finally yelled out as he keeled over for a second, long enough for the Elite to take advantage. A sharp pain rocked his body as the alien lunged at him and tackled him to the submerged pavement. He felt a pair of hands wrap around his neck and grip tightly as his airway closed up and his head began to pound. Balling his hands up into fists, he landed blow after blow on the Elite's head as purple blood poured down onto Luke's visor. Bringing his right knee up at an angle he landed a blow in it's gut which broke the Elite's grip for a split second, long enough for Luke to smash his helmet back into the Elite's blooded face and knock him up off of him. Kicking the Elite in the chest, it rolled backwards as he stalked towards it, ready to end their fight.

"_Luke! Get away from him so that I can take a shot!_"

"He's mine, focus on the others!" Nearly leaping up into the air, Luke smashed his fist into the Elite's chest as he watched and felt the armor plating buckle and the bones shatter. A second punch broke even more bones and he could feel the organs inside as the Elite cried out, blood pouring from between it's mandibles as it labored to get a breath of air. Reach to his leg, Luke grabbed his pistol and picked the Elite up with his left arm and held him at head height, it's legs limp on the ground. Sticking the barrel of the gun in it's mouth, he fired off a single shot which blew the back of the Elite's head out as it's two cat-like eyes rolled in different directions and the alien went completely limp. Tossing him to the side, he took a second to get his bearings and locate his Battle Rifle. All around the battle raged and it was looking bad for the rest of the soldiers. In multiple spots the Elites had broken through the lines and were fighting the Marines in either hand to hand combat or cutting them to shreds with their Plasma Rifles or their Carbines. Both Dagger and Claymore were holding their lines as the Elites circled around them and the Ghosts continued their strafing runs. Running back towards their point in the defensive perimeter, Sergeant Johnson turned to him.

"I owe you a cigar, sir!" he said with a laugh while pulling out his own and chewing on the end. Still too hopped up to see any humor in the situation, Luke turned to the attackers again and knew that he'd need to slow the Ghosts down. Watching one coming from his left, he crouched down and got into a gap between cars and tracked it as it came close. Finally committing, he lunged out as it came by and smashed the butt of his rifle into the side of an unsuspecting Elite's head which caved in instantly. Now driverless, the Ghost splashed to the ground and Luke kicked the body out of the driver seat and hopped in himself. The controls were rather simple with two joysticks on either side of the main console where there were a number of smaller holographic buttons. Tapping the two on the front of the sticks the two cannons fired a few shots and he was in business. Turning back towards Claymore's side of the perimeter which was being hit the hardest; he squeezed the triggers and drove towards them. The enormous blots of plasma smashed into the Elites' shields and they quickly fell under the assault while others dove behind cover and took a few pot shots at him. Only a couple of them remained in the open and pressed down another button which activated the boost. Forced back into his seat, the Ghost jolted forward towards one of them. Strafing to the side a little bit, the bladed wings smashed into the Elite as it fell to the ground, part of it's torso torn open. The jolt of hitting such a solid creature knocked Luke around a little bit and he hit his head against the console as the holograms sputtered and eventually died. Regaining his composure, he turned the Ghost around and did another strafing run which killed a few more Elites and seemed to take the pressure off of Claymore and his Marines. Driving by, he saw the Tempest wave his left hand in thanks as he head over to help Dagger out. Unfortunately the other Elites seemed to have caught onto what he was doing and were prepared as he rounded the top of the perimeter and headed towards Dagger's side. A few sniper rounds zipped through the air and took out some Elites who had poked their heads out long enough but the other Ghosts had arranged themselves against him and opened fire as he began to strafe sideways across the open parking lot. The large blue bolts of plasma slammed into the Ghost's armor and melted it away, exposing the wiring and superstructure inside. A few hits skipped off the bulbous center section which sent superheated chunks of metal flying into Luke's face.

"Dagger, blow every mine we've got over here!" Luke called out over the radio. Seconds later, orange explosions filled the air as the anti-personnel mines went off. The ball bearings tore through the Elites' shields like it did earlier and the Ghosts' lack of armor for the driver didn't provide much defense for them as they succumbed to the same fate. The stragglers were quickly mopped up as Luke abandoned his Ghost which was heavily damaged on the front and didn't seem to have much life left in it. "Sergeant, what's the situation?" he asked as he ran back to the defensive perimeter which was heavily compromised, a number of the cars completely destroyed or knocked way out of the way.

"It's bad. We've got a lot of wounded and a lot of KIA. Ammo is getting scarce and I'm not sure how much longer this wall is going to hold." Nodding but not saying anything, something caught Luke's eye and he looked back towards the space port as the first ship, a pleasure yacht, took off into the air and flew out towards the Madrigal tether.

"Doesn't matter, we did our jobs," he said as he motioned towards another ship taking off. "Grab whatever supplies you can and get these Marines out of here, my squad will hold the Covenant off long enough for you guys to get away from here and get to an evac point."

"With all due respect sir, I'm not going to sit here and get my ass shot off just to run away. My squad and I will be staying here till those Covenant bastards scrape me off the pavement." Johnson puffed his chest up slightly and bit down tightly on his cigar after he finished speaking, obviously unwilling to listen to Luke.

"Alright, but I want everyone else out of here."

* * *

The lull between waves was a brief one but it was enough time for them to pull the surviving Marines back into the space port. Johnson had procured a decent sized crate of Covenant munitions, almost completely filled with the pearlescent blue orbs that were the Plasma Grenades and he had an enormous grin across his face as he looked down into it. The tank pilot had refused to leave as well and had positioned the enormous Scorpion directly in the center of the road so that it could fire freely on the Covenant as they approached.

"_I've finally been able to secure a steady connection with the _Kamiak_ due to the bloated communication network. Captain Ambresio has deployed Bugle but he is still a long way out and the skies aren't too friendly. Your best bet would be to retreat to the Madrigal tether and try and get up to the station before it is destroyed._"

"That's a good suggestion Nathan but I'm not going to listen to it this time. We need to stall the Covenant long enough for the Marines to get away from this area and for the rest of the ships to get up. Pulling back to the tether won't achieve either one of those goals."

"_I understand Sword. Unfortunately there are no nearby assets I can redirect to your position. We are on our own_," he replied.

"Eh…I kind of figured that was the case since we were sent down here."

"_How observant_." The honk of a car horn caught Luke's attention and he turned around to see Deer hop into the Warthog and salute him. Returning the salute, Luke turned back towards the burning and destroyed parking lot in front of him. He couldn't help but feel a little disgust towards the Captain who had remained in the rear during the evacuation and battle and was now leaving with his troops on a Warthog. This wasn't the time to be questioning people's motives and so Luke ignored the thoughts and pulled out the last Battle Rifle magazines from a crate and put them into his bags. He could feel each one of the soldiers around him, his squad, Sergeant Johnson and three other Marines who had stayed behind. All of them were completely calm as they waited patiently for the Covenant assault that would be coming. They had torn a number of metal panels off of whatever they could find and had created another makeshift piece of cover for them during the attack. Making sure everything was where it should be, he walked up to the cover and set his rifle onto it and watched the horizon for signs of the Covenant. It didn't take long for them to show up.

"Nathan, let's shut these lights down. No need to give the Covenant any other advantages."

"_Of course_," he replied and the entire area went dark as the lights switched off, their filaments still glowing bright orange as they cooled off. Glancing up into the sky, one of the final transports took off from it's pad while it swung over them and began to climb into the sky quickly. This was followed by Katana calling out targets as they emerged from the remnants of the field and began to make their way towards the gate. More Grunts and Jackals were there as well as a number of Elites who were joined by a new group of aliens that Luke had not seen before beyond grainy photos. The apelike aliens towered over the Elites who looked relatively small next to them as they lumbered forward with their crude and primitive looking armor.

"Oh shit…Brutes," one of the Marines said as he shifted his stance slightly behind cover. Unlike the other races of the Covenant, the Brutes seemed to either favor or be forced to use relatively primitive weapons and armor, their guns shooting large spikes that were superheated while their armor wasn't powered in any way and was similar to that worn by the UNSC Marines and not that used by the Spartans or Tempests.

"Open fire when you're ready," Luke said, speaking to the tank pilot. She replied with an acknowledgment and he heard the turret rotate as it's coaxial gun was sighted in. On the main hull the second turret was manned by another Marine who chambered a round and began to fire off bursts towards the approaching Covenant. Looking around him real quick and looking at the Covenant coming towards them Luke knew they would need more firepower. Looking out into the parking lot he saw what he was looking for but knew it would be hard to get. Near a crater was a machine gun sitting next to a pile of ammo belts. Having three turrets would provide more than enough to drop the regular infantry accompanying the Brutes and Elites. "I need some covering fire," he said.

"What?" Dagger replied, looking over at him from behind cover.

"You heard me. I'm heading out into the parking lot to grab that turret and bring it back here because we're going to need that thing before this is over."

"Sword…please, this isn't the time to be doing these kinds of things," Katana said, her voice betraying her emotions.

"I'm not arguing with any of you. This is an order. I want you to provide covering fire for the left and right flanks while I head out there. The tank will keep the front elements down and I'll send some of my own lead out there as well. The most dangerous part is going to be getting back here because I'll be lugging all of that weight so don't burn everything right off the bat." He looked each person in the eyes to make sure they understood what he was asking and all of them seemed to be okay with it. Holding the BR55 in his hands he went back and forth between taking it for a second before setting it down and unclipping his back pack. He reached down to his legs and pulled off his pistol and SMG, making sure the pistol was on full auto. With the two guns in either hand he took a few deep breaths and got up to the cover. "Alright…I'm going!" Every soldier popped up at the same time as he vaulted the cover without issue. A deafening roar of bullets filled the air as the heavy chugging of the tank's guns rocked his body and the tracers flew past his head and out towards the Covenant troops who were caught off-guard by the ferocity of the attack. Pumping his legs, Luke sprinted out into the open as he headed towards the machine gun, juking his body back and forth to dodge incoming fire from the Covenant while he cocked his head to the side whenever a shot got particularly close. Running through a column of thick black smoke, Luke leveled both guns at a Brute who had bravely or foolishly made his way towards him. The two guns spat out a number of rounds into the creature as it's blue armor dented and contorted while red-blue blood sprayed everywhere, the brown skinned alien collapsing to the ground where it continued to move back and forth painfully as it died. Locking both guns back onto his legs, Luke reached for the ammo belts and wrapped them around the gun before finally hefting it up into the air, preparing to haul it back to the gate.

"I've got it, heading back now!" he called out over the radio.

"Sword! Watch out!" He only had a second to react when bright blue light illuminated the area around him. A deafening explosion rocked his body as a searing and then mind-numbing pain washed over his body from the right side before he felt himself hurled through the air. He blacked out as his head smashed into the ground.


	24. Interlude

"Interlude"

Warm sunlight fell on Luke's face as he kept his eyes shut, the light cutting through his lids as he remained motionless, a slight breeze coming across his cheeks. Finally opening them up he was greeted to a bright blue sky overhead with a few wispy clouds floating by as the afternoon light bounced off of them brightly. Luke was lying motionless in a hammock as it rocked back and forth, a pair of comfortable jeans on and a long sleeve white shirt with some design on the front that he didn't recognize. Putting his arms behind his head he smiled a little and just watched the sky pass by. He heard something off to his left and looked over at a small pond as a bird landed in the water and floated around. All around him was vibrant green grass that was shimmering back and forth as it swayed in the breeze. On the other side of the pond was a small Oak tree which cast an inviting looking shadow on the ground. Glancing back up into the sky, Luke traced a contrail that had appeared in the sky to a plane making it's way through the sky.

"You look content," a familiar female voice said to him and he looked over to his right as Katana made her way up a small slope to the hammock, a beautiful house sitting in the middle of a well manicured lawn with a large blue pool built into the ground. "I grabbed something to drink, lemonade seemed like a good choice." Her brown hair was below her shoulders again, her skin tanned and glowing which accented her blue eyes. She was wearing a pear of khaki shorts that only extended a few inches down her toned legs. Her white button down blouse had it's sleeves rolled up with the first few buttons undone on the top which exposed part of her chest and a white tank top underneath.

"Sounds great honey," he replied as he began to roll out of the hammock.

"Oh no no no," she replied which forced Luke to stop as she sat down on the edge of the hammock and laid down next to him. He took the cold glass of lemonade which was already sweating on the outside, the water droplets sliding down the outside of the glass. Katana gave him a kiss on the lips as she curled up against him, taking a drink from her glass before holding it on her waist. "So nice being able to have time to ourselves like this."

"Absolutely. I told you that once the war was over we'd be able to be together," Luke replied as he wrapped his right arm around her waist and let his fingers dance on her stomach.

"It's such a perfect day. I saw the weather reports this morning when I was making breakfast and it sounds like the next few days will be the same."

"That's good, maybe we can go on a bike ride or take the ATVs out tomorrow then."

"Sounds fun, we're going to need to go shopping though, almost out of milk and bread," she replied, shifting her head on his chest.

"That's _not _fun," he replied with a laugh. They both remained silent for a few minutes before Katana set her glass down in the grass and rolled over onto Luke's chest. She pulled herself up to his face and kissed him again.

"You don't know how much I love you."

"Doesn't matter because I love you more," Luke replied before he kissed her on the lips and then the neck as she closed her eyes and twisted her head away. She reached down and began to unbutton her shirt as Luke took hold of her waist and continued to kiss her. His hands travelled up underneath her tank top and rubbed her back before her brought them to her stomach and then to her chest. Katana laughed a little and smiled as she took her top shirt off and rolled her tank top up above her stomach. He undid her shorts and let his hands travel down underneath the shorts as she slid down him a little bit and kissed his neck and chest after pulling his shirt off.

"You're such a bad influence on me soldier." Luke smiled a little when she said this and continued kissing her as he felt the lines of her body. "Soldier!" She suddenly yelled out, rising up off his chest as she screamed as loud as she could.

"What's wrong with you?" he asked.

"SOLDIER!!"


	25. ETA 15

"ETA 15"

"_SOLDIER!! Open your eyes_!" Luke's head was ringing and his body ached as he heard Nathan yelling into his ears over the different alarms blaring inside the helmet. "_Soldier, this is not your time to die! Keep fighting_!" He struggled to open his eyes as the sounds of battle forced their way into his consciousness. His vision was blurry as off to the side into the lip of a burned crater which was filled with water that had risen up a few inches onto his visor. The thing that startled Luke was the spider web cracks all alongside the left side of his visor which was playing havoc with his HUD. The motion tracker and squad information flickered on and off before being replaced by static for a few seconds and then recovering. He turned it off as he continued to get his bearings as his mind made it's way out of the molasses and back to combat speed. Off in the distance he could see plasma and tracers flying back and forth as Covenant troops maneuvered past him, ignoring him as he stayed motionless. He tried to activate his camo but the suit began to run off the list of problems.

"_Stealth plating has been destroyed…gel layer has been over pressurized and twenty percent has been leeched…shield generator has been critically damaged and output has been reduced to 18 percent_…" the list went on and on as the computer's female voice spoke to him. His armor was in bad shape at a time when he needed to be at his best. Clenching his teeth, he brought his right arm up to his face as the pain washed over his body, his left following a second later much easier. Taking a few breaths he pushed himself back up to his feet as he cried out in pain while he got his footing. A Brute had ducked down behind some burning wreckage and fired of bursts from it's Spiker, unaware of Luke now positioned behind him. Water was pouring off of it's two blades as it fired off another burst which seemed to empty it's clip out and the Brute ejected the magazine from underneath the weapon and started to feel around it's body for another magazine to replace it. Luke knew that this was the prime time to attack and so he looked for a weapon. Off to his left was a Marine's corpse without no weapons around, but strapped to his chest plate was a decidedly non-issue knife that Luke pulled out and ignored the pain as he ran up to the Brute and jammed the serrated five inch blade into the alien's neck. A second later he had stabbed it into the Brute's neck two more times as it's blood sprayed out from it's neck wounds. Another couple of stabs between armor plates brought the Brute down and Luke quickly grabbed it's weapon and grabbed a few of the enormous magazines off of his corpse and slid them into his left belt pockets which hadn't been burned off from the explosion earlier. Dropping into cover he wanted to get a handle on the situation so that he could get back into the fight.

"What hit me?" he asked Nathan.

"_Nothing, technically. Judging from data I could retrieve before the suit went offline…and the enormous craters that have appeared it was a glancing blow from a Wraith's plasma mortar. You're lucky it wasn't any closer or else the suit probably would've failed_." Luke had no problem believing that's what hit him, especially considering the amount of pain he was in and the damage his suit had taken. "_I would like to caution you, I've located a number of serious breaches in your suit that have compromised it's seal; in particular there is a breach that has lodged a rather large portion of shrapnel into your torso. I've administered biofoam to the wound but the laceration is quite large and the bleeding is still serious. If it's not treated within a few hours you'll bleed out._" Looking down on the bottom right portion of his chest plate, Luke saw where the edge had broken and where the wound had been sustained. Unfortunately he couldn't see it but the trail of blood that had travelled down his side and leg since getting out of the puddle backed up what Nathan said. But in the end it didn't matter.

"Nathan, my only concern is the next couple of minutes, not a few hours from now."

"_With all due respect that's what I'm looking at as well. Bugle is inbound to this location with an ETA of fifteen minutes. You didn't think I'd just let you wake you from your unconsciousness so that you can die a few minutes later, do you_?"

"With you I'm not really sure," Luke replied back as he prepared the Spiker. Just then an enormous shockwave reverberated through his chest while a deafening boom echoed over the fields. A split second later he saw a flash of bright light as one of the 90mm shells fired by the Scorpion impacted in the field. Luke could see a Wraith emerging from behind the crop, it's rounded front torn open as plasma spewed in all different directions. Seconds later a second round impacted on the same spot which blew enormous chunks off the Wraith's armor as the explosion was contained inside the Covenant's alien metal. Despite the two shots, the Wraith continued to push forward, it's cannon rising up into the air as plasma pooled up between the nozzle and the three "petals" that made up it's cannon. Unleashing the blinding white mortar, the ball of plasma arced gracefully through the air before impacting somewhere inside the space port, easily overshooting his squad, or at least the tank which was still operational. A third shot rang out which proved more effective as it slammed into the main gun and destroyed it in an explosive mix of flames and plasma. Secondary explosions started to go off internally as the Wraith's plasma reserves were breached until the entire tank exploded in a fiery ball of plasma which engulfed a number of nearby soldiers who essentially melted instantly. Shifting his focus from this duel between tanks, Luke got up but remained crouched in pain as he ran to some other cover which gave him an angle on a number of Grunts and Jackals firing towards the gate. From his angle he didn't have a view on the barricade they had erected but the Covenant didn't care, as long as they could wither the Humans down they'd be victorious. Despite his pain and injuries, Luke decided against firing on them and instead rushed up with the Spiker's blades and his knife at the ready. Stabbing with his left hand into the shoulder of a Grunt, he swiped the twin blades across the backs of two Jackals who fell to the ground instantly, their spines severed and their torsos torn open. Without stopping he plunged the blades into another Grunt before hurling the knife into a fourth Grunt who was just noticing what had happened to his comrades. Leaving the knife in it's body, Luke grabbed one of the Plasma Pistols that had been dropped and held it in his off hand. Without any sort of indicators for ammo he had no idea how many more shots the pistol had but it didn't matter, there were more than enough of the things lying around for him to replace it with. Getting up behind the burned out car, looked out to the center and right side of the parking lot where there were still an enormous amounts of Covenant troops massed for an attack. Something caught his eye to the left hand side and he saw a large Marine running in the open with a crate dragging behind him, diving into cover behind another car that had been blown backwards. Luke then made out the shape of the Sergeant who was still carrying around his precious box of grenades. From behind cover, Johnson opened it up and proceeded to throw Plasma Grenades one after the other towards the Covenant. The bright blue orbs floated through the air until the landed which started their internal three second timer before they exploded. Once the first one went off there was a non-stop rhythm of detonating grenades which scattered the Covenant as they avoided the explosions of bright blue plasma which sent tendrils licking at the concrete and metal that filled the parking lot. This action drew a large amount of fire from the Covenant but Johnson remained almost oblivious to the attacks as he threw more and more. Luke watched with amazement for a few seconds before he decided he would need to help the Sergeant get back from the position that he had put himself in.

"_The armor is falling apart, just like you_," Nathan chimed in as Luke scooted up to the corner of cover and began scouting the area.

"Don't worry, I'm sure it's just getting started. Whatever power you can spare, route it to the shields, I'm going to need whatever I can get to get out there."

"_I'll_ _shut down everything but basic systems, including life support_."

"Just do it." Giving the command, Luke could immediately taste the unfiltered air flooding his helmet, a disgusting combination of burnt flesh, blood, and the wet crops. In return a golden hue popped up around him for a little bit as the energy shield got a little more power, however he didn't know how much with his HUD completely shut off. Pushing himself off, he fired off the Plasma Pistol and Spiker to both draw fire and keep the Covenant down until he could get to Johnson. The Plasma Pistol overheated halfway there and the top of it popped open to spew out the excess which burned Luke's left hand and forearm. A number of bolts whizzed past his head before two slammed into his chest which blew his shields off. Sliding into cover next to the Sergeant, he had a surprised look on his face as the soggy cigar dropped from his mouth.

"Holy shit!" he called out.

"Don't sound too surprised," Luke replied, coughing slightly.

"What was that sir?" he asked, taking cover as plasma slammed into the other side of the car.

"_I'm bringing the suit back to normal operations. Shielding is offline though, the whole system is fried_."

"Don't worry about it," he said over his speakers which had been reactivated. "What were you thinking doing this?"

"Gotta keep these Covenant bastards back till help arrives. Seemed appropriate to give them a taste of their own medicine."

"Fair enough…" Luke said, trailing off. Replacing the clip in the Spiker, he looked down at the pistol whose holograms had dimmed significantly. Tossing it aside, he peaked up over the hood of the car and drew a sizable amount of fire. "We're going to need to pull back to the barricade. We'll have the tank and the Marines provide covering fire for us so that we can get there in one piece."

"It won't be so easy. We're almost out of .50 cal ammo and everything else is getting to the bottom of the box too. Covering fire is going to burn through a lot of that ammo that we'll be needing later. You just _had _to get that machine gun, didn't you sir?" Luke bobbed his head back and forth for a second before replying.

"I'll take the blame for that," stopping as he winced when taking a breath. "I'll be paying for it too. I guess we'll need a new plan though." He tried to raise his squad on the radio but all he got was static.

"_I'm not sure what's going on, either the Covenant is jamming the signal or the antennae is sending back a false positive_," Nathan replied a second later.

"Fuck," Luke said to himself before turning back to the Sergeant. "Johnson, tell them that we're going to be moving back to their position and ask them to provide what fire they're comfortable with. Bugle isn't here yet and this battle isn't over. But you're going to use me as cover, understand?" The Sergeant didn't look happy at this but didn't say no either. Luke reached over with his left arm and yanked the car's door off the hinges to use as a makeshift shield to help dull the amount of inbound fire he'd take. Readying his Spiker he got Johnson behind him as he held the door up over his lower torso and stood up. Instantly plasma fire began to slam into the metal, superheating enormous patches which dripped down molten metal. A number of hits impacting his chest and shoulders and the heat was nearly unbearable as he clinched his jaws and continued walking backwards. Firing the Spiker in bursts at whoever stood up, it began to click when he reached the halfway point so he tossed it off to the side and focused on giving the Sergeant cover. More shots slammed into this armor and he could see the layers underneath now exposed while a few more hit the lesser armored areas on his thighs which burned his skin directly. Another carbine round lodged itself into his right forearm but he couldn't remove the slug which was poisoning him with radiation.

"You're almost there!" Johnson yelled, the staccato fire of his MA5B erupting behind Luke as he saw the barrel poke out to his side. Reaching back with his left arm, Luke's hand got a hold of Johnson and pushed him back.

"I'm not doing this so that you can get yourself shot a few seconds later," he called out through gritted teeth as more plasma slammed into his armor and melted even more of it. Out of the corners of his eyes he could see the gates of the space port pass him by and he knew that he was close to safety. Looking out into the parking lot, Luke's maneuver seemed to have attracted the interests of the Covenant who had vacated their cover to hunt him down, possibly hoping to claim him as their own kill. This provided a perfect target for the tank who fired off a single shot into the mass of Grunts, Brutes, Jackals, and a few Elites who were chasing after him. The round landed dead on as the mass of troops were engulfed in the blossom of flames and smoke. Flesh and armor were blown in all different directions as those on the edges of the explosion were torn apart while the aliens in the middle were disintegrated.

"We're good!" Johnson said, patting Luke on the shoulder. Checking over his shoulder he could see the battered and worn barricade which had taken a beating since the last time he saw it. Johnson quickly hopped over the cover and Luke did the same, albeit less gracefully and slower as his wounded body was beginning to slow down from the beating it was taking.

"Oh God, Sword, are you okay?" Katana said, hurrying over to him and kneeling down next to him as he rested up against the barricade for a moment. Portions of his armor were still glowing orange from the plasma bolts impacting on it and she immediately set about tending to his wounds.

"Don't worry about me," he said, grabbing her hand and pulling it away gently. "I'll be fine for now. I just need a gun until Bugle gets here." She hesitated for a second before doing what he asked. Leaning over to one of the dead Marines, she grabbed his MA5B and handed it to Luke, the counter reading a full magazine but he didn't see any other magazines lying on the ground which wasn't a comforting thought. Hefting himself up, he rested the gun on the barricade as plasma continued to come at them from all directions. There was an almost immediate temptation to fire off a burst at some Grunts waddling out of cover for a second but he held his finger on the trigger and waited.

"Bugle is two minutes out!" Dagger yelled in Luke's direction and he just nodded in response. Off to the right an Elite hopped out of cover and made a run towards another save haven but Luke spotted him and began to fire in his direction. The ammo counter quickly scrolled towards zero as the magazine emptied itself out into the Elite who had stopped dead in his tracks as the 7.62mm rounds slammed into his shields and then cut through his armor. Just as the last of his magazine emptied itself out the Elite dropped to the ground.

"I'm out," Luke said in a regular voice as he looked around for some sort of ammo and spotted a M6C still holstered on a Marine's hip and he reached over to take it out. Checking to see if a round was in the chamber, he could see the copper sheath and let the slide slip forward again. Without the wireless uplink appearing on his HUD for the scope he was forced to use the iron sights which he centered on a Jackal who kept popping his head up over a barrier with a Beam Rifle in hand. Squeezing off a single round, it slammed into the skull of the alien and knocked it to the ground. He fired off two more shots at Grunts, one of which was carrying the devastatingly effective Fuel Rod Gun.

"WRAITH!" Claymore yelled out, pointing towards the edge of the field. A second of the purple behemoths hovered out into the open, quickly followed by a third. Coughing up some blood, Luke stood up to full height as he watched their cannons open up and begin to glow brightly with plasma reserves.

"Get out of here, get away from the tank!" Luke started pushing his squad away from the cover as he smacked the hull of the tank. A second later the hatch opened up and the pilot started trying to scramble out of the seat. As much as Luke hated the thought he knew he needed to get away from the Scorpion, with or without the pilot and the machine gunner in tow. Running as fast as he could into the support beams for the raised landing platforms, he was covered in a wave of tolerable heat as the first mortar landed just in front of their barricade which caused the metal panels to blow away before contorting in all different directions from the immense heat. The second hit was on target as it landed on top of the Scorpion and instantly set off whatever ammo reserves the tank had left. .50 caliber ammo shot out in all different directions as the remaining shells detonated inside the hull, spewing out molten shrapnel in all different directions. One piece zipped past Luke's head and embedded itself in a nearby I-beam where it was still glowing an angry orange color. Luke lost sight of his squad as he made his way through the underside of the landing pad, threading his way between beams and supports as he tried to meet back up with the survivors. Just then, in the relative quiet he heard the distinct sound of a Pelican fly over head, a machine gun firing at full speed. Listening to the sound, Luke began to follow it towards the center of the space port where he spotted the Pelican dropping down into one of the large open spaces. Emerging into the open, he waved towards the gunner who was pointing the machine gun out towards the parking lot but had spotted Luke and was beginning to turn towards him. "Where's everyone else?" he asked as he arrived.

"You're the first one. We heard from the rest of the squad as we came in but no one is here yet," the gunner replied back.

"Alright, give me a gun then, I'm going to go an find them."

"If that's what you want, sir," he said, reaching over for one of the BR55s hooked up to the wall next to him. It had a single clip in it but Luke didn't plan on getting into any major firefights. Heading off to the other row of landing pads, he strained his eyes to see if he could see any of his squad but couldn't see anyone.

"Sword!" Turning to his right, Luke saw Dagger with Katana over his shoulders, limp.

"What happened?" he yelled out when he saw her like that.

"She just got knocked out, Claymore and the Sergeant went ahead. Why didn't you get onto the Pelican?"

"I came back looking for the rest of you. Let me take her, you shoot." Quickly getting behind Dagger he took Katana in his arms and stayed to the side of Dagger who was wielding the two Battle Rifles which he was using to fire a few bursts in the direction of the Covenant who were quickly approaching. All of the sudden Dagger pushed Luke back away from the main roadway and held him there.

"Keep your head down." A second later, a salvo of missiles and machine gun fire filled the area as Bugle turned the Pelican and fired off what he had. "Let's go, they can't stick around much longer." Running out into street he ran as hard as he could towards the Pelican as Dagger covered him, taking a few shots which caused his shields to flare up brightly in the darkness. Sprinting past the empty missile pods, Luke placed Katana onto the floor of the Pelican as Dagger followed up behind him. Giving Dagger a nudge, he was the last one on board as Bugle immediately took off over the battlefield. Looking down, Luke's view was obscured by the enormous pillars of smoke that filled the air as a few stray bolts of plasma zipped past them. Once they were a ways away the gunner closed the door and pressurized the rear compartment as they continued their journey back to the _Kamiak_. Luke made his way to Katana who was lying on the floor with her helmet off, eyes closed.

"Hey…can you hear me?" he said just loud enough to be heard over the engine noise as he brushed a few stray pieces of hair off her forehead. She didn't respond to him so he took a seat and kept rubbing her head and speaking to her as the chief knelt down next to him.

"Sir, you're injured," he said, motioning towards the blood that was still coming out of his side.

"It's fine, take care of her first."

"There's not a whole lot I can do. Looks like she's got a serious concussion and is out cold. Once she's back on the ship we'll have a better idea of what happened; I'm no doctor after all." Luke nodded as he took his helmet off and set it down on the ground next to him. For the next couple of minutes he looked down at the deck as he sat there, his blood creating a small pool around him as the Pelican continued to make it's way to the _Kamiak_, finally arriving in the hangar bay which was alive with activity. As the doors opened up medics and medical staff ran past as the wounded soldiers were being taken to the medical wings to get treatment for their wounds. A number of doctors hurried up to their Pelican as the chief walked out and began to examine the ship. Dagger, Claymore, and Johnson all ignored the doctors trying to look them over and they quickly made their way to Luke and Katana as they sat on the floor.

"Get him to the ER now so that we can close up this wound!" one of them yelled out, pointing to him.

"No! Make sure she is alright first," Luke countered, getting to his feet as the nurses came up to him, their scrubs already stained with blood. They hesitated for a moment before they walked over to her and pulled one of her eyelids open and swung a flashlight back and forth over the irises.

"She's fine, looks like a concussion. Just take her back to her quarters and we'll send someone by," the nurse responded, standing up from her.

"Then it's your turn," the doctor said as he motioned for Luke to follow him. "We don't have anything that can carry your weight with that armor on so you'll have to walk there."

"It's fine," he said, wincing as he moved his right leg again, the nurses coming to his side to help him. As he was led off he took one last look at Katana before heading to the ER.


	26. Recovery

"Recovery"

Sprawled out on a sterile metal table was Luke's JORMUNGANDR, battered, beaten, and burned from the ground operations on Paris IV. The left side of the armor was in much better shape compared to the right side which took the brunt of the plasma mortar blast which easily burned layers off of the plating as well as destroying most of his critical systems stored on his back. The glass on his helmet would need replacing along with a large portion of it's electronics which were melted from the heat. His undersuit was completely destroyed, a large portion of it actually melting onto his skin which caused headaches for the surgeons as they patched him back up. All over the rest of the armor were small pockmarks and large burns and deformations from the various shots that he took during the battle, all of which would require a lot of work to repair before he would be able to put this suit back on, if he'd ever be able to use it again. Brushing his hands against the rough metal he was thankful the armor could withstand the punishment it was put through, doubly so considering it was in a single battle and not over an extended period of time. Picking up the helmet in his hand he looked into the visor but his reflection was cracked and distorted. Setting it back down he could see the scars on his upper arm exposed where the skin grafts were put over the burns that he had received. Second degree burns covered most of his shoulder and bicep as well as a small portion of his forearm, the right side of his ribcage and chest, in addition to a small portion of burns near his neck. He had sustained a number of other injuries including bruising to his organs which would need a few days of no activity to heal up. The most serious injury was to his Liver where a portion of the armor was lodged into it. It was a simple procedure to remove it and he would be back to full strength within a week although Luke wouldn't listen to any of the estimates if he was ordered into battle.

"_Quite impressive, if I may say so_," Nathan said over the speakers in the small room he was in. "_If only we could produce this for all of our soldiers I have a feeling this war would be very different at this point in time_."

"That's a big 'if' Nathan."

"_Fair enough_." A second later the door behind Luke opened up and Captain Ambresio entered. Snapping a salute, Luke returned to looking at his armor as Ambresio walked up next to him.

"How are you doing son? How are your wounds?"

"I'm fine sir, nothing that will slow me down."

"Oh I'm sure," Ambresio laughed with a light chuckle. He extended his right arm and touched the armor softly before bringing his arm back. "This sure took quite a beating."

"Yes sir. It did everything I asked for and then some."

"That's good to hear. Technicians are going to fix what they can but some of it is going to need to be replaced before you'll be able to suit back up." Luke was a little taken aback and turned to Ambresio.

"Sir, how long will that leave me benched?"

"A week, most likely. Dr. Allara had the foresight to order spare parts for the entire system but they can't be installed until we get back to Earth and then they'll need to repair the armor pieces and reapply the stealth plating which will take some time. But don't worry, your team wasn't going to be deployed that soon anyways. We took a few hits ourselves during the space battle and need to get repaired as well and that'll take a little bit longer." Luke let out a deep breath but didn't let his frustration show.

"How did the battle go?" he finally asked.

"We lost but a large portion of the population was evacuated thanks to the efforts of your squad and other Marine detachments on the surface. Sergeant Johnson, however, received a large dose of radiation from those plasma grenades he was throwing around like candy but the doctors are saying he's not showing signs of radiation sickness but something else. Boren's Syndrome? I'm not sure, never heard of it before. He's going to get the Commendation of Bravery however for leading a squad of Marines to victory at the Madrigal Space Port. Your squad won't be mentioned."

"That's good. The Sergeant fought just as hard, if not harder, then the four of us and was willing to put his life on the line for me when I was wounded." Ambresio nodded but didn't say anything else for a few seconds.

"Go visit Katana. Doctor said she should be waking up soon and it'll probably be nice to have her see a familiar face."

"Yes sir."

* * *

Katana remained motionless in the white hospital bed with a peaceful look upon her face. A few wires were extending from her chest and her head where they fed information to a small cluster of monitors off in the corner of the cramped room. A single IV had been placed into her right arm where it was feeding her nutrients while she remained unconscious. He could feel that she was hurt, a different sensation than when he is normally around her, like the signal wasn't tuned properly. Luke was standing next to her as she breathed slowly, his hands on the railing as he waited patiently. A nurse came in a pair of dark purple scrubs holding a syringe on a platter with a small vial next to it.

"Hello Lieutenant, I'm just going to administer a drug which should wake her up shortly."

"You can do that?" he asked the dark haired woman.

"Oh yes. It's a pretty common procedure, the doctors just wanted to let her brain recover naturally for a while before we brought her back." Luke nodded as she inserted the needle into the nutrient bag and squeezed the medicine into the drip. She took the tray and left quickly as Luke remained by Katana's side. He put out his still sore right hand and took hers as he waited for the chemicals to kick in, softly rubbing his calloused fingers over her surprisingly soft skin.

"After everything that happened to you I kind of thought I'd be the one standing over your bed," she said quietly. Luke looked over at her as she looked back at him with her blue eyes.

"Things have a funny way of working out in the end." She smiled and nodded.

"You look good though. What happened out there?" For a few seconds Luke bounced his head back and forth a little bit as he questioned what he wanted to tell her.

"It was a Wraith that got me, then it just blew out all of my shielding and stealth plating which left me pretty exposed. I suppose you saw the rest though."

"Yeah…That was really brave of you to do that. You do know that right?"

"I was just doing what I had to do," he said, hoping this wouldn't be something that people would be constantly trying to congratulate him on. She smiled and shook her head.

"Alright mister humility. I'm not really sure happened to me though. One second I'm getting away from that tank and then I wake up here."

"Dagger said a dud 90mm hit you in the back of the head when the tank exploded, knocked you out cold instantly," Luke replied. "Good thing you have such a thick head." Katana contorted her face, not amused at his joke and she quickly pinched his hand when he wasn't paying attention.

"Watch your mouth," she said as he smiled back at her mockingly.

"I think you should get some more rest, you woke up on the wrong side of the bed." Luke walked over to her and leaned down to her face. He hesitated as his head hovered over her. He was near her forehead but he brought his lips down a little bit and pressed them against hers for a second before pulling away, her eyes closed as her bottom lip remained between his a little bit. "Get better." She mumbled something, unable to speak as Luke left the room.

**A/N: Sorry for the ridiculously long time since the update. Stuff in real life has kept me preoccupied from writing and the chapter I just finished tonight (28) was really giving me a headache and I ended up needing the time to come back and look at the story with fresh eyes so that I had the energy to see everything through. Hopefully I can get the updates back out in a reasonable amount of time but they won't be as fast as they were previously. Come Hell or high water this story will be finished!**


	27. Friends in Server Banks

"Friends in Server Banks"

"At that point in time, the Petty Officer and I entered Chief Warrant Officer Preston's Pelican and we returned to the _UNSC Kamiak._" Luke was sitting in a comfortable leather chair at a table with some high ranking ONI and Naval officers who were taking notes of his recounting of the Siege of Paris IV, as it had come to be known within the military. The conference room was well lit as the lights reflected off the mahogany table that had been polished to a mirrored finish. All four of them remained silent as they sat opposite from him, appearing almost uninterested in what he was saying.

"Your armor. I've read that it sustained a nearly fatal amount of damage and will require an extensive amount of repairs before you'll be able to wear it. Now I'm curious as to who's fault this was, the Covenant's or yours," Colonel Ackerson asked, setting his tablet down on the table and bringing the stylus up to his mouth, an almost imperceptible smile coming across his thing lips. Luke could sense that the Colonel already believed he had won and was getting arrogant.

"The Covenant, sir, caused that damage. As I stated earlier, the Wraith's plasma mortar landed incredibly close to me and caused that damage." The other officers were looking uncomfortable as they looked down at the their pads or at the table in front of them, unwilling to get into the middle of a fight between Luke and the titan Ackerson.

"Yes, you did say that earlier, but why were you in that position in the first place? Everyone who made it out of that fight said that you had established a secured position within the space port that was not destroyed until later on in the battle, when Warrant Officer Preston provided your team with a dustoff."

"Our remaining arms and ammunition were insufficient, I believed, to hold off the Covenant forces for long. In my judgment, retrieving the weapon was the best course of action and I stand by the actions of every one of those soldiers that I fought with. I actually had to watch them bleed out and scream in pain, sir." Luke clenched his teeth for a moment when he realized he had struck a nerve with the Army colonel who bared his teeth and chuckled deeply. He set his stylus down and remained silent as Luke could sense the tension in the room growing quickly.

"What are you implying, _Lieutenant_?" Ackerson said, his voice threatening and laced with venom.

"Sir, I am not implying anything. I feel that you are unfairly prosecuting me for an act that was beyond my control. When the shot had been fired I had my back to it and the source of the shot was in the fields, there was no way I could've known what was happening. And, sir, if I may-."

"No, you may not," he said, interjecting Luke before he could finish. Ackerson picked up his tablet as the other officers stood up as well, Luke jumping to his feet. "Your armor, not to mention the armor of your cousins the Spartan-IIs, costs as much as a full sized ship to produce. Every time you do this you're costing lives on what few planets we have left. Maybe you should keep that in mind before you decided to use yourself as a shield or run into the open on a whim." Without another word, the four of them quickly left the room, leaving Luke alone as he sat back down in the chair and put his head into his hands.

"I don't even know what I did to that guy to piss him off so much," Luke said out loud. He let out a loud grunt of frustration and threw his chair back as it slammed into the wall and fell over. Walking towards the door he heard the magnetic locks click on and a small LED switch to red on a black box next to the handle. Grabbing it he shook it a few times as he tried to open the black wood door but it wouldn't budge. He jiggled the handle even harder and began to pull on the door harder and harder.

"_Please Lieutenant, I'd rather not have to send a janitor down to fix a door that you ripped off it's hinges_." Luke was caught off-guard by the distorted voice spoke over the speakers in the walls, the sound as if two different voices were speaking in complete unison.

"Alpha?"

"_It was Omega, actually, but I'll let it slide_."

"_We have some information that you'd probably be interested in_," Alpha said. Luke stepped away from the door as they spoke to him.

"Why'd you feel the need to lock me in here without any warning?"

"_We can't have anyone coming in here at the moment_."

"_I wouldn't bother yourself with Colonel James Ackerson. He is in charge of a project that is competing for your funds, well…technically your budget is an off-shoot of the Spartan-II budget and the JORMUNGANDR is a hybrid of the MJOLNIR Mark V and VI Powered Assault Armor that is designed for stealth over direct combat_."

"_Although you seem to_ thrive _in it_…"

"…_Suffice to say, it is in the best interests of Colonel Ackerson for the Tempests and Spartans to fail. If I were in your position I would ignore his attempts to rattle you and continue your successes because you have been impressing those who actually have a say in matters beyond turf wars_." As much as Luke was interested in what the Twins had to say about Ackerson it didn't seem that important in the scheme of things and he wondered why it was they felt that they needed to lock him in the room to tell him this.

"Is that all?" he asked, slightly annoyed. They both laughed when he spoke and didn't stop for a few seconds.

"_Humans are so impatient. We're the most advanced computer in the known universe and we're_ still _not fast enough for them_," Alpha finally said.

"_We've got some information on that man you encountered on the Kendreth Space Station. Arthur Gallahand_."

"What about him?"

"_It seems like some within the UNSC have more to lose than they stand to gain if Gallahand's connections are exposed. He ran a shell banking company here on Earth that was receiving large amounts of private money but it was being sent right back out to a number of different sources, such as companies and private bank accounts_."

"Why can't you access any of that information?"

"_A block has been put on all of the information pertaining to those transactions. And with Gallahand dead the bank has gone underground and judging by other indicators, those accounts were nothing more than shells as well. Like we said, whoever put those blocks on the transactions is a high ranking member of the UNSC_."

"Great…so now one of our generals is a traitor?" Luke said, tossing his hands into the air as he paced around the room.

"_It would appear that whoever is doing this is hedging their bets in the case of a Human victory against the Covenant. They are positioning themselves for a potential insurrection on a much larger scale following the war's ending. The UNSC will not have the resources to police all of the star systems like it used to and revolutionary figures will be able to gain a considerable amount of traction before any security measures can be put into place to prevent their growth_."

"Why did you tell this to me and not someone within ONI?"

"_Lieutenant, you and your squad are the four people we know who cannot hide anything from the UNSC. Your every action is monitored in some way and _your_ direct involvement with Arthur Gallahand leaves no doubt in our mind that you are not the one who placed the block on the transactions._"

"Well…thanks for the vote of confidence," Luke said, a little unsure of what else he should say to the Twins. "Can I tell anyone else?"

"_We would prefer it if you kept this information to yourself. If you must speak to anyone about it, do so in person and away from any UNSC facilities_." Luke nodded as the door beeped softly, the LED appearing green now.

* * *

The cool late August air that had come down on Sydney brushed past Luke's face and head as he ran through the enormous UNSC compound with his newly shaved head. Wearing a pair of black shorts with a tight zip up coat, he listened to the sound of his breathing and the heavy footsteps on the concrete road as he felt the first signs of lactic acid building up in his legs after running for a few miles. Earlier on he had lifted weights for a few hours to keep himself in peak shape but he was getting frustrated with being grounded for so long. The repairs on his armor were taking a little longer than he had hoped and it was most likely due to the extension on the Kamiak's repairs who took more damage than initially thought. Glancing up into the air, Luke was disheartened at the gray clouds getting darker, making the already flat light worse as thunder rumbled off in the distance which seemed a little odd for this time of the year. His mind wandered back to what the Twins had told him weeks earlier about Gallahand and the shell bank. The thought of a traitor within the UNSC was gnawing at him but without anyone to turn to he was beginning to feel desperate and trapped.

"Hey there," Katana said, startling Luke as she silently came up next to him wearing a similar running outfit. "Should've told me you were going to be coming out here so I could join in."

"I kind of like to run alone but I'll make sure to mention it to you next time," he replied, not even close to being out of breath. She smiled in return and looked forward as he continued to run on.

"What's on your mind?" she asked after a few moments of awkward silence.

"Nothing."

"I'm sure…" Katana said sarcastically, trailing off.

"I spoke to the Twins a while back and they mentioned some new information about my first mission on the space station. It's sounding like someone within the UNSC is looking to profit from the rebels out there but I can't really turn to anyone without fear of tipping off whoever's actually doing this." When he finished Katana remained silent as they kept running, reaching up to adjust the black cap that she was wearing on her head to keep her hair out of her face. "Don't ask what's wrong if you're going clam up…" he said, annoyed at her silence.

"I'm thinking, Sword, give me a minute." Grunting, he sped up the pace a little bit to try and make his work out harder and she responded with ease, coming back up to his side. "I think you should speak to the Captain or the Doctor. Neither one of them seem like they'd be the kind to cozy up with top brass, especially when it comes to rebels."

"Well…that's what I was thinking but I can't just go off on my own to investigate this kind of thing. They're going to notice if I go missing all of the sudden."

"It's possible Ambresio could get you some leave time…"

"I don't even know where to start and this hardly seems like a pressing matter at the moment either, not with the Covenant practically knocking on our doorstep."

"Drop the issue then," Katana said, almost taunting him. "If the war ends in our favor I'm sure we'll have plenty of time to investigate this stuff." Luke closed his eyes as he continued running, tilting his head up into the sky as he cracked his neck.

"You're right…it's not my fight. Not yet at least." He continued running for a few more minutes before his PDA went off as Doctor Allara's name came up on the screen. "Hello?" he asked, still running.

"_Good afternoon Luke! I have some good news for you, the new parts for your armor have arrived and they're being installed right now. If you meet me in the Hive we can go over some of the changes that have been made."_

"I'll be there as soon as I can, ma'am." Turning to Katana he had a huge smile on his face which she returned though hers had a look of curiosity on it.

"What?" she finally asked, caving in.

"My armor is ready."

* * *

The JORMUNGANDR armor was suspended in one of the various weapons locker rooms within the Hive, the black skin shining brightly as it stood in front of him. Dr. Allara was off to the right hunched over a computer but turned to face him when she head Luke and Katana enter the room as the door hissed shut behind them. Luke couldn't help but smile as he saw it back in one piece, a far cry from when it was lying crumpled on a table where it was still warm to the touch from the Covenant's assault on it. Stepping closer he could see that many of the dents and deflections had been covered up but a few off the largest impacts still remained in some capacity, the most obvious being the two deep cuts across his left chest from the energy sword the Elite was using against him.

"You look happy," Allara said to him as he stood, nodding his head gently.

"I really couldn't be happier Doctor. It's been pretty nerve wracking the past few weeks trying to survive without it."

"Well…the good news is it's all ready for combat. We installed a few new pieces into the armor which will trickle down to your squad when we do maintenance in the near future but we're going to be working out the kinks on yours." She walked over to the armor and stood closely to Luke as he continued to look at it but he couldn't help but sense an odd feeling coming from the Doctor, one that he had only felt from Katana. Ignoring it, he shifted his attention back to what she was saying about the armor. "The shielding system has been upgraded with a new projector. We were using a generator which will be put into the MJOLNIR Mark VI but the projector was still from the Mark V so your suit was compensating for the incoming damage but it was getting bottlenecked. All of that should be solved now so expect to see increased power levels and a much faster recharge time." She ran her hands along the armor as she got the next part. "We put a lot of work into the gel layer and we've increased conductivity between the armor and the undersuit. Reaction times, in conjunction with Nathan, will be nearly instantaneous so have fun with that. Your HUD has been upgraded along with an overall firmware update which you won't notice but Nathan will enjoy. The main thing is that it will be able to track hundreds of individual targets at any given moment and, if you choose, can point out who is most dangerous. It's still in the early phases of development but the algorithms are promising."

"What about the visor?" he asked, tapping the brand new silver plate on his helmet.

"We've increased the density to hopefully prevent further breakage. Yours shouldn't have broken in the first place so we're doing some tests to see what went wrong with it."

"I also had some computer problems too after the impact, forced me to shut the whole thing down along with my radio going out."

"That was a power failure, connected to the shielding failure. We found that the explosion overloaded the reactor and it was trying to reboot itself and the batteries just can't sustain something like that for long. Some components of the computer were knocked loose and we've solved that as well." Allara looked over at Luke and smiled as he returned it, happy with what had changed.

"This sounds great. Thanks for putting all this effort into the armor; I'll definitely be putting it to good use."

"_Yes, you will Lieutenant,_" one of the Twins said, both of them appearing on a nearby holotank. "_A situation has arisen that demands your_…expertise."

"_The situation in particular is on New Pittsburgh. Food riots have erupted all over the planet and are causing problems for the local populace_." Luke put his hands on his hips as he dropped his head slightly, listening to the Twins begin their briefing. "_The riots have spread to an almost planet wide strike which is putting an immediate strain on UNSC war efforts. If the situation is not resolved immediately there will be a serious lag in capital ship production and possibly put a permanent dent in the war effort_."

"_Top brass has decided that a show of force is needed in lieu of a full scale invasion. We don't have the resources to spare trying to land entire brigades against Humans, it just can't and won't be done_."

"So we're being sent in to clean up this mess instead of fighting the Covenant?"

"_Two of you, yes. You will be inserted with a Marine division that is being deployed to assist the militia forces_."

"_Ma'am? I must ask you to leave the room, the following information is classified and is on a need to know basis_." Allara stared at the Twins and then back to Luke as she read his face for some sort of information but his face remained emotionless as he read he feelings, confusion and worry abound. He gave and almost imperceptible nod as he glanced at her eyes and she seemed to get the hint as she left the room silently.

"_Will Katana be joining you on the mission_?" Omega asked as the door closed behind the Doctor. Luke remained silent as he thought quickly, a blast of anger flooding his mind as Katana stood behind him, furious at his silence as he fidgeted with his running shorts.

"No." Katana didn't make a sound either as she clenched her teeth and left the room without uttering a word. Luke knew that she would have more than enough to say to him whenever they were alone and he was willing to accept that. "What's so secret?" Luke snapped, now in his own mood.

"_We have been monitoring communications from the planet and based off the chatter we are quite sure there is rebel activity present on the planet_."

"There's probably rebel activity on every planet, those rats are everywhere. What does that have to do with me and my squad?"

"_The UNSC has two contracts with heavy industry to provide the materials to Misriah for ship production. Sentinel Heavy Industries holds the largest contract and uses New Pittsburgh as it's main production center. United Enterprises is it's rival company and stands to reap the rewards of a collapse of Sentinel's output_."

"_We were able to work around some of those blocks we mentioned and Arthur Gallahand was a high ranking accountant for United Enterprises for a number of years before leaving the job unexpectedly. At that point the trail goes cold as he no longer appears on the grid until you encountered him seven years later on the Kendreth_."

"So you think that UE might be behind this riot? That doesn't explain why they'd want to start a rebellion in the colonies," Luke mused as he understood why the Twins were keeping the information so close to the chest.

"_At this point in time there is nothing to suggest that UE _wants_ to have a rebellion, there are a lot of variables that I'm sure they could do without. However, we believe they are merely providing the funds for the rebellion that has already been established for political reasons. As a corporation, having people indebted to them in control of the government is in their best interests_."

"That's a big jump to make," Luke said, folding his arms across his chest as paced back and forth slightly. "The amount of evidence that would need to be collected to actually implicate the company itself would be enormous. And with help from the inside they'd know long before anything could be done to actually stop them. I'll see what I can do."


	28. Riot Control

"Riot Control"

Luke and Claymore quietly cleaned their weapons piece by piece as they sat in their quarters on the ship that was transporting the Marines to New Pittsburgh. Only two lights were on in the room, each of the soldiers shining a bright beam of light onto the table in front of them as their hands glided over the greased metal while they completed tasks that they'd done thousands of times, often times blindfolded. Like many soldiers said, the tearing down and rebuilding of their weapons was a therapeutic exercise and allowed them to remain centered and focused on an upcoming mission. Luke was particularly thankful for the time after choosing Claymore to come with him instead of Katana or Dagger, something that had been on the back of his mind the entire time and he wanted it to not be a distraction any longer. He didn't make the decision on any criteria outside of wanting someone who he could trust and depend on to be there when the situation got bad. Ever since they'd first met, Claymore had proven himself to be a loyal and competent ally who was always by their side as they faced the toughest odds.

"It's hard to believe colonists would rebel at a time like this," Claymore said as he racked the slide on his M6E pistol to make sure everything was in place, something that he didn't need to confirm after experience but it was still habit.

"They always said that a common enemy would unite everyone against their differences. But even now people still try and use this war to profit, even if it means their lives end faster. It's disgusting."

"You've got that right." Luke reattached the scope onto his BR55 and set the rifle down onto the table, dropping his hands onto his thighs with a soft sigh. There was a small clock on the table that was counting down the time till the estimated arrival to the planet. They wouldn't be wasting time when they arrived, the plan was to insert the two Tempests into a large square that had been secured by local militia. A food warehouse distribution center had been established there during the early days of the shortages as the farmers got antsy and it started to foment unrest in other locations on the planet. Luke couldn't help but think this wasn't a hard situation for the rebels to create. If UE paid off the farmers to stop producing even for a few weeks, the situation would spiral out of control almost immediately which would create the situation they were facing currently. But he couldn't understand what it was that they were trying to gain from all of this, try and understand why it was they were actively trying to destroy the government. He shook his head slowly as he thought about everything which caught Claymore's attention. "What is it?"

"I'm just thinking…I don't seem to understand what it is that drives these rebels to do what they're doing. Power…?tr"

"Looks like it. If what you said was accurate, these people are already in positions of power but apparently it's not enough for them. They want to carve out their own empire at the expense of everything we're fighting for. So now you and I are being sent out to some god damn planet that I've never heard of before to keep some people calm long enough for them to go back to work. I'm pretty sure this isn't what the UNSC had in mind when they spend billions making us." Luke couldn't help but laugh at Claymore's assessment of the situation which was hauntingly accurate.

"We just do what we're told, nothing else. If it was up to me we'd be on the front lines going up against the Covenant until we're dead, but it's not up to me," he replied.

"Hmmm, maybe it's better you're not calling the shots," Claymore shot back and they both laughed some more. "Hey…I've got to ask you since we're here; is there something between you and Katana?" The answer caught Luke off guard and he was sure Claymore could sense the tension and almost terror that flooded Luke's body when he asked the question. He tried to keep himself composed as he handled his pistol, removing the slide and pulling the barrel from it's mounting.

"Is it that noticeable," he finally asked, still staring down at the table with a much more somber tone in his voice.

"Well…no, not really. It's just that when we can all read each other's emotions it's easy to notice the little things, like when she brightens up whenever you're around. Little things." Luke wanted to smile but it just couldn't come to him and he remained stone faced. He felt like Claymore was sensing his trepidation and he tried a different tactic. "She was so worried about you when you were out at the Kendreth Station. A couple of nights I found her up and pacing around, worried about the mission even when she knew you hadn't arrived on station yet."

"I didn't know that," he said, telling the truth.

"No worries, your secret is safe with me," Claymore proclaimed, extending his hand though the darkness towards Luke who shook it. The gesture impressed Luke and it further cemented the bonds that had grown between the team over the years.

"_Soldiers, the captain has informed me that the ETA has been pushed up. I would suggest you prepare to depart the ship for the surface soon_," Nathan said in the room. Luke reached over to a light switch and turned the dim lights on in their cabin (the ship being an older design) and grabbed the few belongings they had with them that weren't stowed with their armor and the majority of their armament.

* * *

"Let's go over this one more time. The amount of rioters has increased and they're beginning to push into food distribution center. Right now, the militia has maintained some semblance of order but these people are getting restless and they're getting hungry so they're most likely going to be easy to trigger. Echo squad will be securing the northern quadrant and we'll be setting up position between them and Foxtrot to the south. Everybody got that?" The Marine Lieutenant was yelling loudly to his squad as they rode in the back of the Pelican drop ship during it's descent to the surface of the planet. Relatively bland, it was an almost nonstop series of rocky hills covered with sparse trees and shrubbery. Looking closer, it was easy to see the hundreds of mine shafts that dotted the landscape where automated machines worked day and night to strip the planet of it's metallic resources. Large open spaces connected multiple mine shafts together where the raw ore was brought together for transportation into the numerous cities that sprang up around the enormous forges that created the billions of tons of Titanium-A plating that Misriah Industries manufactured into weapons, armor, and other tools of war for the UNSC. For the most part, New Pittsburgh was a world that would quickly die off after the war ended as spending decreased and the constant need to replace destroyed equipment waned; but until the day that that would happen the planet was critical to the UNSC war effort and was worth sending Humans to it's surface to reestablish control of it's refineries. All of this was of little concern to Luke and Claymore who sat in the two seats next to the door to the cockpit of the Pelican, more or less ignoring the mission briefing that had just been given by the Lieutenant. He glanced back out the rear of the ship and could see a hazy blue sky that seemed incapable of deciding whether it was going to rain or shine. All of the sudden they dropped down below a mountain top and began to zip back and forth between smoke towers which were venting thick white pillars of white steam and bland black and gray buildings that were sprinkled in between the refineries.

"_This place already sucks_," Claymore said, almost childishly, as he looked at the bland brick buildings they were flying over, a seemingly weak attempt on the part of the city planners to make the city more reminiscent to it's namesake back on Earth.

"Yeah," Luke replied, standing up from his seat while grabbing onto the swinging basket in the center of the Pelican which was used for stowing gear and a hand grip for those soldiers without seats. The Lieutenant held up a single finger as Luke took a few steps forward, indicating a minute or less to touchdown. Nodding softly in return, Luke motioned for Claymore to join him which he did, the two enormous soldiers melting away as they activated their active camo which would be used in a grand display as they would reappear somewhere near the crowd. Luke wasn't fond of the idea but the regular brass wanted to send a message and having the two of them at their disposal seemed to be too good of an opportunity to pass up. Outside, a large red brick warehouse passed by them as the Pelican swung around it while they got a glimpse of the thousands of people who were being kept at bay in the streets. A moment later the building dominated their view again as the ship came in with it's nose to the crowd. Luke and Claymore hopping off quickly and stayed low as they ran close to the thruster wash which was kicking up a small cloud of grayish brown dirt and dust into the air. With rifles in hand they hurried up near the line and remained low and stationary as the Marines jumped off the transport. They were located in what looked like a residential area that had been converted from an industrial sector as the foundries were constantly forced to the outskirts of the city and the interior was renovated and rejuvenated. Most of the buildings were small row homes made of the same dark red brick with windows covered tightly with bland curtains on the inside, protecting the interior from the riot that had erupted. The complex they were in seemed to be an old vehicle depot of some kind with a number of lifts inside, visible through the numerous car entrances on the side of the building. Inside, Luke could see that the building was stuffed full of olive drab ration boxes with the UNSC eagle perched on top of the Earth. But the outside was there focus and it was much more dangerous. Thousands of residents had taken to the streets and were chanting and jeering the soldiers but otherwise remaining stable. Luke could tell that anything would trigger them and the pitiful collection of local militia and Marines would be no match for these people. It was a pure numbers game and they were on the losing side.

"Nathan, get images of every one of these people." As the Marines moved into position, Luke stood up to full height and prepared to deactivate his camo once given the signal. Moving to one of the louder and rowdier parts of the crowd where the people were being held back by low concrete barriers that went up to their waste. They were dressed in coats and pants to combat the cool air and he watched the breath leave their mouths as they screamed and shouted at them. They were angry about food being restricted, wages decreased, and a number of other benign issues that were insignificant in the grand scheme of things. Glancing over at the Lieutenant, he saw an almost imperceptible flick of his wrist which gave Luke the go ahead. Deactivating the camo, his black armor materialized directly in front of them as they were screaming.

"Imperial pigs, all of-!" someone said before the area around him went silent. He scanned the crowd for any sign of weapons, his silver visor moving back and forth slowly without showing an ounce of emotion. He couldn't help but think back to the dichotomy of the situation after leaving Paris IV where the people were more than glad to have him there. But now he was almost a symbol of everything they hated. A young kid, probably no more than eighteen or nineteen, someone who Luke easily could've been friends with, leaned against the barrier and spit a wad of mucus and saliva at Luke and the green slime sat on the straps of his backpack. Almost immediately the kid recoiled when he realized what he did but the stunned people around him refused to let the kid escape into their midst as they proved a neutral barrier to his exit.

"Try that again," Luke said. The kid didn't respond but clenched his jaw and stared back at himself in Luke's visor. "That's what I thought, you piece of shit." Taking a few steps back, Luke glanced over the crowd as they began to get loud again and could see a number of vehicles trying to force their way into the area for some reason. A large white delivery truck was being impeded by the crowd who were trying valiantly to break into it's rear while the driver waved a handgun around inside the cab, pointing it at the people who got close to his doors. The passenger remained stoic inside as he watched what was going on with boredom. Some older sedans were trying to get through as well and they were being left relatively alone as the crowd slowly parted to let them through.

"_Something's not right. I don't know what it I but I can feel it and it's not right_," Claymore said over the radio.

"What are you thinking?"

"_Not really sure. Some people here aren't here because of food and wages_."

"Nathan, are you picking up any radio chatter that's out of the ordinary?" Luke asked, gripping his rifle tightly as he hunched over slightly and began to lurk closer to the crowd. He was feeling the same thing as Claymore and he didn't like it.

"_Absolutely none_," Nathan replied, sounding annoyed at the thought that he was withholding information like that.

"Doesn't mean something isn't happening. Get ready for action, weapons free." Flicking the safety off, he stopped and removed the magazine and slapped it back in where he loaded a round into the chamber, surely shocking those who could see him. Then, all of the sudden there was a sharp spike and he wheeled around just as a man began screaming. One of the militia was holding a grenade in his hand as he ran up next to a Warthog, his squad mates frozen in fear.

"No more oppression!" he yelled just as the grenade went off in a blast of orange and white flames. In an instant the man disappeared as the Warthog exploded a second later, the men standing next to it and on the gun blown apart as pieces of them splattered to the ground with sickening wet thumps. Luke dropped to a knee and scanned the soldiers for another threat and was met with the sound of a chaingun churning to life as it's rounds slammed into rioters who were torn apart by the enormous rounds. The shocked and panicked crowd erupted as people ran away screaming and ducking while others jumped over the barrier in anger. Luke was the first one to get a shot off as the man twisted and contorted before falling off the gun.

"_He's not one of ours_!" someone called out over the radio. Standing up, Luke turned his attention to the new front as people came pouring over towards him and the Marines. One man produced a knife and Luke returned the favor by reaching for his with his left hand and stabbed the man in the chest as he got close, dying instantly. More gunshots rang out as the Marines shot their attackers which seemingly spooked enough to force them to run away back to the streets. Glancing out towards the white truck again and the mass of people who were running by it, Luke thought he was stupid to not have realized it earlier. Regardless, the shockwave of the explosion cemented it firmly in his mind. A blinding flash of light erupted from the truck as a wall of flames and superheated gas rolled across the streets. The concussion wave lifted him up and threw him to the ground about ten feet back and his hearing was temporarily blown as he heard nothing but muffled yells and a loud ringing. Blinking away the burns on his retinas, he jumped back to his feet and could already see the enormous crater that was left. All around, people stumbled back and forth, most badly injured from the concussion or the shrapnel as blood poured from open wounds while others screamed in agony as they looked at their missing limbs and exposed organs. Luke could barely keep his stomach settled as the rain of debris came back down, a disgusting mix of rock, dirt, and flesh that dropped hands and burned pieces of meat all around him. A thick brown cloud boiled towards him and obscured his vision as he turned enhanced mode all the way up. Looking at the neon outlines of his surroundings, he located Claymore making his way towards him, motioning to his ear to signal that he couldn't hear. Luke did the same as they grouped up, weapons at the ready.

"What's next!?" he yelled to Luke.

"I don't know! Just hold this position until this is over!"

"_I'm triangulating on a strong radio source. I believe there are more bombs_," Nathan said. Just then a second explosion, smaller than the last, rocked the area as one of the sedans detonated and sent metal shrapnel all over, killing more people who were trying to escape while a nearby building had it's walls blown in. A thick cloud of black smoke billowed into the air as flaming debris fell back to the ground, creating more smoke and haze. Luke moved over towards it and was shocked when he felt something latch onto his right arm. Swinging around ready to attack, he saw that it was a woman who was crying trying to get his attention. Her left arm was clutching her stomach as blood poured from an enormous wound that exposed her organs and she had a number of other lacerations on her neck and body that were bleeding as well. He knew that the woman was going to die, even if she did get immediate medical attention but the sight was so shocking and gruesome that he couldn't just leave her.

"Ok…ok, it's alright, just look right here," he said as he wrapped his left arm around her back and lowered her to the ground. Setting his rifle down, he moved her hand away and gritted his teeth as he looked at the wound. "What's your name?" Reaching to one of the side pockets on his backpack he found a small canister of biofoam and grabbed it while also finding a syringe of morphine.

"M-marie," she responded, the tears streaming down her cheek. Another explosion rocked the square although this time it was much smaller than the last two, sounding more like a grenade than a car bomb. She flinched when this went off and Luke leaned over her to shield her from any debris as he stabbed her in the leg with the morphine and watched as her eyes went limp and her hands caressed the ground, out of her control. With two fingers he pushed her organs back in and quickly stuck the biofoam in and released the entire canister as the white chemical filled up the wound and spilled out over her side. More sedatives were contained in the foam which would numb the local area. He didn't have time to stay with her, though, and grabbed his gun and located Claymore.

"What was that last explosion?" he asked, his hearing back now.

"_Something smaller, I think it might've been an RPG from over there_," he replied as Luke ran over to him, pointing to a corner house with a perfect view of the street.

"_That's where the radio signals are coming from. Get in there_!" Nathan said. The two soldiers sprinted through the stunned people as they headed towards the building just as another rocket zipped out through a window towards the warehouse. This was quickly followed by a third car bomb on the other side of the square which shook the ground and hit them in their chests like a brick.

"Go around back!" Luke ordered and Claymore continued through an alleyway as he smashed in through the heavy black door. The solid wood shattered as Luke's enormous frame forced it's way through the obstacles, splinters flying in every direction. This entrance surprised the lone man on the bottom floor who turned around slowly, an old SMG cradled in his hands. Luke snapped his rifle up and fired off a burst which hit the man directly in the chest and dropped him instantly.

"_Clear here_," Claymore radioed to Luke as he emerged from behind a wall. Luke began to climb the stairs slowly and knew that there were two people upstairs, most likely whoever was coordinating the explosions and the man shooting the rockets. Finally reaching the door at the top of the narrow stairwell he activated his camo and prepared to enter. His first instinct was to burst in and shoot them both but it was obvious that they were just a part of a larger organization and he wanted to know who they were. Bursting through the door, his camo disoriented them as they stared into nothingness. A second alter, three bright muzzle flashes lit up the darkened room and killed the man with the rocket launcher as he slumped down against the sheetrock, blood streaking from where he was hit. The second man grabbed his pistol and Luke fought all his instincts as he let the man shoot at him, causing his shields to flare up. Staggering backwards, he fell down the stairs, telling Claymore to stay put. Luke hoped the man fell for the show and sure enough, he heard windows breaking and watched him leave on his motion tracker. Jumping back to his feet, he ran to the back of the building through the kitchen and into a small unkempt yard with Claymore in tow. The man was running over the tops of the buildings as he tried to escape from the Tempests. Both of them activated the cloaking and kept with him as he continued to run away. They hopped over a few low brick walls before he reached a fire escape and began to make his way down. Only giving a few frantic looks back, he seemed more concerned about just getting distance than not being seeing.

"_He's taking us right to them_," Claymore noted.

"That's the idea," Luke replied back as he got down onto the streets and began to run in the direction of the outskirts of the city. Ducking into an alleyway, he ran through the tight spaces as Luke and Claymore got closer but remained a safe distance away. At the end of the alley Luke could see a busy street that was filled with cars zipping back and forth, a number of them looking like emergency vehicles with their lights and sirens on. The man stopped for a second and then ran out into the street towards a large group of people who were still trying to get away. This move forced Luke's hand and they sprinted out into the street. There was no warning for the car that slammed into him as the front end of the small car essentially exploded in metal as the electric engine tore itself from it's mountings and jumped up into the air. Sheet metal wrapped around Luke's body as the cloaking deactivated and pain shot up his left side. He was surprised at how tolerable the pain was when looking at the mangled remains of the car. Slowly, the driver got out and stared at Luke who was already back to scanning the crowd that had stopped to gawk at the sight that they just witnessed. Thankfully the man didn't try to blend in with the crowd and only glanced back for a second before running down a smaller street.

"Move!" he bellowed over his speakers and the crowd quickly parted as he kept running towards the man, determined to catch him before he disappeared.

"_You alright_?" Claymore asked over the radio.

"Yeah, I'm fine. I've had worse," he said, thinking back to the near miss by the Wraith. The man continued running down the street as Luke closed the distance quickly, replacing his rifle with his pistol as the spaces got tighter. Trying to lose the soldiers, he shouldered an old door open and began to run up a neglected flight of stairs. In one swift movement, Luke crouched down and leapt up to an old window on the second floor and pulled himself up through the dust covered glass which startled the man as he saw Luke stepped through the windowsill and onto the old wood. Even through the air filters Luke could taste the mustiness of age and didn't like the smell as it filled up his helmet.

"What are you going to do to me!?" the man asked frantically.

"Who are you working for?" Luke asked, taking a few steps forwards towards the man, his pistol still resting at his side.

"I…I don't know. Over a year ago we were approached by a man who said that someone had taken an interest in our struggles and was willing to finance whatever operations we planned."

"Was his name Arthur Gallahand?" he pressed.

"Yeah, sure," the man replied, shrugging. Luke was glad that they had found another one of their pawns. And unlike Gallahand himself, this man seemed more than willing to give up information if it meant his survival.

"Where's your base of operations? I know there are more of you and you're going to take me to them." The man pointed over to Luke's right where there was an old door which probably led to a room that was just as old.

"Just go through there, we linked the buildings together so it's a few rooms over. Everything you want is in there." Luke could sense that the man was telling the truth and that he was relieved, the stress melting away. Before he could react, Luke put a single bullet through his head and the man crumpled to the ground.

"Claymore, come up here, we've got a location for the rat's nest."

"_Sounds good_," he replied and a few seconds later he was at Luke's side.

"Jesus…need to shoot him?" Claymore asked.

"Where were we going to take him? We've got not time or space for a prisoner." Claymore didn't respond which usually meant he agreed. Putting his pistol back onto his thigh, Luke brought his BR55 back out and brought it against his shoulder as Claymore got up behind him with his SAW, preparing to break through the door. Turning his camo on, Luke watched his motion tracker and focused on his thoughts as he waited to see if there was anyone there. Nothing. Reaching out, he slowly gripped the handle and pushed it open, revealing a dark room filled with dust that hung in the air, sparkling occasionally as the particles occasionally fell into the path of a few narrow beams of golden light that cut through the boards that had been hastily put up over the window. Luke's eyes adjusted almost immediately and it was like being in a room illuminated by daylight as he moved forward foot by foot without making a sound. There was another door in the back left corner of the room that they arrived at he waited again to determine if there was anyone on the other side. Opening the door they stepped into a small and worn bathroom. Where the shower should've been was a blue tarp tacked to the ceiling that was covering up something that had been done to the wall. Avoiding the dislodged tiles and broken glass, Luke switched to thermal and looked through the material on the other side. With no water or electricity in the building, the walls and air were as cold as the outside which lit up a room close to them which glowed a bright orange from what looked like five people and large stacks of computer equipment.

"_Soldier, I must warn you, the city is collapsing at an alarming rate. I'm seeing the reports of armed rioters moving towards multiple locations throughout the city. One group in particular will be passing by this area within a few minutes if they hold their current course_."

"Thank you Nathan, we won't be here much longer." Motioning to Claymore, they ducked under the tarp and stayed low as they moved towards the room. "No explosives, I want to keep as much of the equipment in one piece as possible."

"_If you say so_…" Claymore replied with a faux tone of disappointment. Moving towards the end of the dark hallway, he peeked his head around the corner and saw that they had left the door cracked slightly, a blue haze escaping from all of the computer equipment inside. He walked up to the side of the door and waited for Claymore to do the same on the other side. Luke motioned that he would go low and Luke was to stay standing up when they entered. Kicking the door open with his right leg as he turned inwards, the two soldiers found their targets and began to fire. Claymore's SAW roared to life as it filled the air with rounds while Luke squeezed off a few bursts. It only took a moment for four of the insurgents to die as their blood still hung in the air. Luke knew that wasn't all of them as he stood up and entered the room, rifle at the ready in case the last guy tried anything.

"FUCK YOU!" someone yelled as he jumped out from behind a small cluster of silver boxes which were typically used to carry weapons. He was about to shoot the man when he saw that he was holding something in his right hand which Luke assumed was some sort of detonator. Instantly, he spun around and began to run out of the room, dropping his rifle when it got stuck underneath the table that he was next to. Reaching out with his left arm he took a hold of Claymore's vest and pulled him along as he ran back towards the bathroom. They just barely reached the end of the hallway as the concussion wave slammed into them and the air filled with dust and debris.


	29. Seven Minutes

"Seven Minutes…"

Luke could almost see the ripples of the concussion wave as it blew past him and rocked the building, knocking the air out of his lungs in the process. Stumbling forward slightly, his vision was almost immediately obscured by thick red and brown dust that come rushing through his legs and engulfed them. He felt something heavy hit his shoulders and saw that the ceiling was collapsing above them from the explosion's force. The floor they were running on was buckling and splintering and it was pretty obvious the building they were in was coming down. Turning to his right, he was about to run back through the hole in the bathroom but a nearby wall had collapsed and more of the building was coming down.

"Over here!" Claymore shouted out and Luke turned towards him just as he lowered his shoulder and rammed himself against the outer wall. It took a second or two but the brick began to bow outwards and collapse away from the building which let the dust blow out into the open air and let them run out of the building. Jumping down to the street they got away as it continued to come down. Debris was thrown all across the street and there was an enormous hole in the building which was billowing smoke. A loud roar filled the air as more of the brick collapsed and brought the townhouses on either side of the safe house down on top of themselves, sending another huge cloud of debris out.

"_Despite the damage, there may be some salvageable information on any disks. The intelligence would be invaluable." _Luke wasn't thrilled with Nathan's suggestion but it was true. Most of the data was probably destroyed or corrupted but there might be a few things that were still usable.

"Where is that riot at?" he asked, getting an idea of how much time he had until they would need to disappear.

"_A few blocks away. I estimate we have about fifteen to twenty minutes until they're at this location, assuming they continue this path_."

"Alright. Claymore, you give me some cover, I'm going to sift through this shit over here and try and find something to take back. If you think it's getting hairy, tell me and we'll bug out."

"Sounds good," he replied as Luke hopped over the debris towards the main pile where he figured the computers would be. Digging his hands into the brick and plaster he began to shove it out of the way in powerful sweeps of his arms. He continued to dig into the rubble, frantically searching for something metallic among the pile of dark red brick. He cursed under his breath as he continued his excavating.

"_UNSC_ _air forces have been mobilized and are en route to pacify the cit_y."

"What do you mean by _pacify_?" Luke asked, still clawing through pipes and splintered wood.

"_A simple nerve agent is being released over the city that will temporarily put them into a coma until ground troops can move in and completely secure the city_." Luke didn't like the idea of making the entire city comatose but it wasn't his decision to make. Yet more rubble stood beneath him and the chance at getting the data and he was starting to get frustrated that he wasn't finding anything. He continually switched vision filters trying to find one that would pick something up but none of them were giving him what he wanted. Finally, he picked something up as an electronic device glowed a soft blue on his HUD, deep in the pile.

"Found something!" he called out. Diving in with renewed vigor, he threw more and more debris out of his way but stopped when Claymore yelled over to him.

"Sword, we've got company…" Luke stood up to full height and examined the road leading out towards the outskirts and could see the mob was coming right for them. He walked down the rubble slowly so that he was at Claymore's side. Only a few blocks away the individual people were easily visible and were clearly armed with assorted small arms as well as other makeshift weapons. Some of them were motioning rudely towards them as they continued to make progress and keep moving forward.

"I thought you were going to tell me if it was looking bad," Luke said.

"Didn't…_doesn't_ look bad. These people have no training with weapons and once we demolish those foolish enough to attack they'll scatter and run." Luke chuckled a little at this but didn't let himself get arrogant or cocky. "We break one and the others might collapse too."

"Agreed," Luke replied after hesitating a moment. His armament was much reduced, however, after losing his rifle in the pile of rubble. Along with his pistol, he had two S7 SMGs strapped to his thighs with a few spare magazines in his load-bearing vest and a few more in his backpack. Keeping his eyes on the mob as it was moving towards them, he took all of the BR55 magazines out and put them in a pile where he could get back to them easily on the chance one of the rioters had one on them.

"You should probably stop losing your gun," Claymore quipped as he kicked a hole into the pile of rubble so that he had somewhere to take cover.

"They can deal with it." Claymore laughed a little more as Luke decided to just remove the backpack entirely. Taking out his spare magazines for the S7s he put it near the other gear and dashed across the street towards an alleyway. It wasn't the most tactically sound position but he pushed his motion tracker out and was able to keep an eye on the other side should he need to change his focus. Edging up to the corner, he saw the rioters were only a block away, at an intersection that was quickly being taken over by the angry people. Their angry voices were reaching his position and he ignored the creeping thoughts about their innocence. They were nothing but hostiles, he told himself over and over. Pulling both weapons out waited patiently for them to fire the first shot. A few seconds later they complied and a number of bullets skipped off the rubble near Claymore who immediately returned the favor. His big gun roared to life and he fired a few bursts back at them, the orange and green tracers sailing over their heads. "That's their chance to turn back around," Luke radioed to Claymore. "Next time they fire we let loose on anyone who is armed."

"_Copy that_," Claymore replied, getting up higher on the piece of cover he was using. Few of the people turned away, most of them ducking or diving for cover but still determined to fight. Luke only shook his head at this but there was an odd feeling of admiration at their determination to fight against such insurmountable odds. Their strategy then became clear as the men with guns began to emerge from the front ranks and out into the open while the rest of the people stayed back. Those who were armed were going to stay away from the mass of people and once they were killed or wounded, their friends would come up and retrieve their body and weapon. It was standard practice for a group who had a lot more people than they had guns and if any stray shots hit someone behind them they could claim they were peaceful and unarmed. Luke decided against using his SMGs then due to their inaccuracy and pulled out his pistol instead, toying with the idea of switching it over to full auto and just controlling his shots. Deciding against it, he readied himself for their shots. The men in the front lowered their black rifles and remained standing as they kept their rifles steadied on Claymore who was the only one exposed at the moment.

"Keep your grouping tight, let's avoid collateral on this one." Just as he finished speaking the men began to fire towards Claymore who stood up into the shots and squeezed off controlled bursts towards them. Luke rolled out from behind cover and fired off three shots at one of the men, the rounds all impacting his chest as clouds of blood sprayed out from the wounds. Within seconds, three of them were dead and their five comrades were scrambling as more precise shots came at them. One of them fell to the ground as a bullet tore through his right leg, a burst from Claymore's gun finishing him as he began to push back up off the ground to get away. Already the people behind them were beginning to move forward to collect their bodies and weapons. The minute Luke saw someone make a run for a gun he shot at them, dropping two more people as they reached out for the guns. Slipping a new magazine into the receiver, he walked out into the street with his pistol leveled on anyone who looked like they were a threat. "What's the status on the air support?"

"_Seven minutes. I've marked our location for pacification so they'll get a direct dose._"

"You hear that? We've just got to play with them for seven minutes."

"_Let's hope I can spare the ammo_," Claymore responded. Looking over towards him as he spoke, Luke was punished for his temporary lack of focus on the matter at hand when he felt a number of rounds slam into his chest. His shields flared up and obscured his vision slightly as he leaped towards a stoop on one of the buildings which took a number of shots, sending concrete up into the air in clouds of gray dust while the black railings sparked and deformed from the bullets. Looking down at his chest, there were three new dents on his right breast where there would surely be some pleasant bruising underneath when he got a chance to take his armor off. Popping out low with his left leg bracing him he fired off more shots towards the mob which was beginning to thin, but not by much. Firing off a few more rounds, Luke noticed that the steady fire of Claymore's gun had gone away with a relative quiet falling over the area. "_Ahh_ fuck!" He called out over the radio as Luke glanced over.

"What's wrong?" He didn't respond for a second as he held his rifle on his lap and was fidgeting with the bolt.

"_It's jammed_! _Give me a second to get it fixed._" Luke didn't hesitate in running across the open ground and over towards Claymore who was attempting to pull the belt from the breach where the round was lodged in the barrel having already been shot.

"What's wrong?"

"Casing didn't eject, somehow got flipped around inside the chamber and the second bullet got fired into it. I've only see this happen once before and it took a while to fix," he responded while trying to get the round out of the barrel. After a few more seconds of trying he gave up and tossed it aside. "I suppose we'll both be getting a lecture for leaving our guns behind." Luke laughed a little and began to think of how to best divvy up their remaining weapons.

"You take my pistol and it's ammo. Bring both of them out and let loose, these guys aren't going down any time soon. I'll whip out the S7s and put some lead out as well."

"Sounds good." Handing him the pistol, he grabbed his remaining magazines and handed them to Claymore who was shedding his extra gear. Unlocking the SMGs from his thighs, Luke scooted to the edge of the rock and looked at the mob which had moved into the open space of the road and was beginning to advance on their position. With both stocks retracted and his hands gripping the frame tightly he popped off the corner and squinted his eyes slightly as he fired off a quick burst at a man holding a rifle who crumpled to his knees as blood seeped from the cluster of bullet holes in his chest. Within a second someone had already grabbed the gun and disappeared back into the crowd where they would surely reappear somewhere else. Claymore was firing as well, popping off a few shots at whoever got close to a body but the numbers weren't in their favor and eventually someone would grab it. When Luke wasn't paying attention he felt something slam into his head as his shields flared up and it took a second before he shook his head and refocused. A few more shots cracked past his head and he swept his right arm out and let out a burst at the man shooting at him while he kept his left arm focused on the main body of the crowd. Firing off his last burst, his HUD flashed red up by the ammo counters and there were two distinct clicks as the magazine emptied itself. The next few seconds would be critical as Luke clicked the eject button and the two long black sticks popped off of the SMGs and soared through the air. Claymore had already compensated and had switched over to full auto as the pistols roared to life and bullets tore into the crowd. Luke reattached his right SMG as he pulled two clips from his vest and slapped one into place, setting it down in front of him he reached for right hand weapon and reloaded it just as quickly and resumed firing. Some of the rioters took his downtime as an opportunity to make their move as a sizable group came rushing towards him from their right flank. Already close, Luke didn't want to waste the ammo and holstered his S7s and pulled out his combat knife from it's position over his left breast. With his arm held across his chest and the blade pointed away from him, the first man reached him and was dispatched as Luke plunged the blade into his chest. The second was to his left and in a swift motion he grabbed him with his left arm and brought him across his leg before being stabbed as well. A third got too close and Luke swiped the man's neck as he was taking it out of the second man. By this time the rest of the group that was coming towards him had stopped in their tracks but weren't turning around just yet. Luke didn't waste any time as he tossed the blade up into the air slightly and grabbed it with his left hand while he reached down for his right S7. Bringing it up wide he squeezed the trigger and sprayed across the entire group. He didn't have time to react to the man he sensed come up from his blindside who tried to tackle Luke but only managed to throw him off balance as they stumbled away together. Gripping the man tightly Luke put the knife into his back but was startled when the man didn't die immediately but reached up towards his face. Looking worn and dirty, the man's eyes were tearing up as his left arm travelled up Luke's vest and up to his throat. Luke lifted his chin and extended his neck as the man's arm grew weaker and fell back off of his chest as his legs gave out and he fell to the ground. Blood had stained the load bearing vest as well as covered part of his armor and for a second Luke was unable to move as the man collapsed at his feet but there wasn't time to let off the gas.

"Inbound!" Claymore yelled out and he pointed up towards a number of black objects streaking across the sky towards them. Everyone stopped the dots began to separate apart with one coming right towards them. Listening carefully Luke was able to hear the distant roar of the engines of the Shortsword bomber as it's IFF appeared on his HUD. It continued to drop down from the sky before leveling off a few hundred feet above the buildings. He saw the bomb bays open up and a black tube dropped out of the bottom. A few seconds later the dark gray plane screamed past, the air boiling and vibrating as it continued in towards the city. Shifting his attention back to the tube, he could see that it was cart wheeling towards them before there were two loud pops and thick yellow gas billowed out of it. It didn't take long for the nerve agent to began spreading as the canister sailed over their heads and continued to flip through the air, the gas quickly saturating the area. Luke was surprised at how quick and effective it was as the rioters scrambled to get away from it but dropped to the ground within seconds, some twitching and seizing up before stopping completely. Claymore and Luke were perfectly safe as their suits remained sealed and the air was being filtered, and on the off chance it couldn't be filtered out their rebreathers had enough air in them for ninety minutes of strenuous activity. Activating their dustoff beacon, he walked over to Claymore and sat down on a chunk of brick that was still intact and took a deep breath while he hung his head between his legs and just let himself take a break. Looking down at the brick, he couldn't help but chuckle as he reached down between a few chunks and pulled up a relatively intact piece of a memory stick. Claymore laughed as well, shaking his head before he stopped and sat down near Luke.

**A/N: Just a few things to point out, Claymore's weapon malfunction is based off something that happened to a friend while he was firing his pistol so I'm not really sure if it's possible with a rifle but I thought it was cool. I'm also sure some people will think that the chapter would be a reference towards Bungie's use of 7 in Halo and their other games but it's actually more of a reference to Resident Evil 5 which I was playing during the time this chapter was being written. People who played the game, and paid attention to Wesker's dialog, should get the reference. Just some things I wanted you guys to know.**


	30. Dreams

"Dreams"

"Sword…listen, I'm not angry with you, not anymore at least. Do you believe me?" Luke rested his left cheek on his closed fist, leaning off to the side a little in his chair. A few candles lit the table that Katana were sitting at casting a flickering and dancing orange light over them but Luke remained back a little, only the protruding features of his face getting caught in the light. The waiter stopped at their table and filled his glass back up with water before walking away, the entire time Luke's eyes were focused on the glistening jewels across from him. Katana leaned in, her brown hair falling off her shoulders onto her chest while her face showed sympathy mixed with concern.

"I just don't understand why you were angry in the first place Katana," Luke finally responded, their voices low to prevent people from listening in on them.

"How would you feel if Dagger was sent on a mission and excluded you from going without a second thought? I'd take a guess that you'd be just a little pissed off." Her point was a valid one but it ignored the root of the problem.

"Claymore's skill set was, I believe, better for the mission that we were going into. Regardless of what you and I are, my priorities are to my mission and the survival of it's members," he said, finally leaning in while he tapped the table with his right index finger. "I'm sorry if you disagree with that but I'm the team leader and these are my responsibilities."

"I wasn't implying that I get special treatment Sword." Luke didn't respond as their water came back and placed two plates of food on the rich wood table. The white plate had a perfect sized steak on it that was grilled to perfection with a side of potatoes and beans. He kept looking at Katana while the waiter asked if there was anything else he could do for them before leaving when Katana said it was alright.

"Well I got a different sense," he fired back once he felt the waiter was far enough away. He could also sense the tension and stress building up inside of Katana. He knew that he was right though and she needed to realize that she couldn't just give him the cold shoulder for the weeks that he'd been back just because she didn't get to go. He had decided that they needed to deal with the issue directly and asked her out to dinner during their weekend leave, choosing one of the most expensive restaurants in the area. Unfortunately she didn't really see his point and his stomach had begun to twist up in knots of frustration, killing his appetite. Disappearing back into the shadow, she adjusted her red dress and took a sip of the wine that she had gotten, fiddling with her fork but not touching her food.

"You're right…I'm sorry. I didn't mean to put you into the position of making it seem like I should've gone because of our relationship. It won't happen again." Luke suddenly felt a wave of guilt hit him but he held it back and didn't let it show. He wasn't going to start a pendulum of emotions between the two of them regretting every word that they had just spoken.

"It's nothing personal Katana, just keep that in mind. Like I promised you before, once this war is over it'll just be me and you." She smiled when he said this and he could feel her foot brush up against his leg and he flashed a quick grin. Remaining silent for a few seconds, they both began to dig into their meals.

"So it sounded like the mission didn't go so well," Katana said after they'd eaten for a few minutes.

"Not particularly. The entire city was on the brink and a number of Separatists were in the mobs and set them off." He stopped speaking as he thought of the explosions and the people causing him to set his fork down now that he had lost his appetite for the moment. Luke stared off into the distance too long and Katana could sense that this had hit a nerve.

"I'm sorry...if you want to talk about it I'm here."

"I'm fine. Just some stuff that's a little hard to get out of your head." He took a bite of his food and put the images out of his head, trying to enjoy what had so far been a rather depressing meal.

* * *

A lone man stood still in a room of white light with his hands at his side and his head tilted towards the ground. He was dressed in heavier clothing with a puffed up jacket and worn jeans, a beanie on his head. Dirt and grime covered skin that was already worn and weathered from years of hard labor. Blood stained his pants and had pooled up around his feet as more dripped to the ground every second or so. More had dripped from his slightly open mouth where it fell onto his coat and stained the dark green material a deep black. He continued to stand there, just like Luke who was no more than twenty feet away from him. Encased in his armor he was able to look around the near blinding white light that surrounded them providing no source of reference. The man took a single step forward, blood dripping in a new spot near the crimson footprint while he took another one.

"What do you want?" Luke demanded, his voice echoing around him. Rooted in place, he could only stand there and watch as he continued to walk towards him one step at a time. A few seconds later and he reached out to Luke and grabbed onto him, Luke's horrified face hidden behind his silver visor reflecting everything around him like a barrier. The man's arms grasped at Luke but they couldn't seem to get a hold on him as he continued to claw and slap at his armor, bloody tears streaming down his face as he struggled to do anything. Glancing up and away Luke saw that more people were beginning to appear, people that he had killed while trying to put down the rebellion. Even more shocking were the Covenant who began to materialize, still missing limbs and sporting large holes in their body from their battle on Paris IV. Ambling forward, the husks of those he killed continued to move towards him silently. His heart was pounding harder and harder and the adrenaline was beginning to surge through his veins but he couldn't do anything about the situation with his body locked in place. An Elite got close to him with his mandibles open and began to click them and growl in quietly. More and more hands began to claw at him and it became almost impossible to see beyond the mass of bodies as they continued to surround him and reach for him. The frustration, anxiety, and terror continued to build up inside of him until he couldn't hold it in anymore and he let himself go. Tears welled up in his eyes and he couldn't help but cry while he stood helpless and exposed to all of them.

All of it ended a second later as Luke's limbs kicked out and he sat up in his bed covered in sweat. His sheets were tossed everywhere and his head was pounding and he stretched his arms out to brace himself. The pain didn't stop though, his veins feeling as if they were on fire and wouldn't go out. Flexing his hands continually he tried to focus his mind elsewhere while the pain pulsed and continued, more sweat beading on his forehead and neck where it dripped down his back. He heard a sound off to his left and turned his head to face Katana and Dagger standing in the doorway, squinting their eyes while looking at him.

"What's wrong?!" she called out but grabbed her head in pain. Dagger grabbed a hold of her and pulled her back away from the door. Looking down at his legs he saw that the sheets had been pushed further away from him and were hovering slightly with his hair sticking up on end. Unable to fathom what was going on he tried to stay calm while the pain continued.

"_Sword, don't be alarmed_," Nathan said over the intercom. A second later Luke heard a muffled gunshot and a sharp prick on his left arm. Looking down he saw a small dart dangling from his bicep with an empty vial inside of it. The tranquilizers only took a few seconds before they hit Luke's system and his sense began to dull, the pain still present but now distant and removed. His head now weighed hundreds of pounds and wobbled around before he slumped against the wall and fell back on his bed.

* * *

"It's time to wake up. Sword, I need you to open your eyes. If you can hear my voice I need you to concentrate on it and open your eyes." Beginning softly and quickly getting louder, Luke could hear Dr. Allara speaking to him and he did his best to focus on her voice and open his eyes. The lids were heavy but the sedative had seemingly worn off and he quickly winning the battle over the sleep that had fallen over him. His vision was still a little blurry as he looked around and could see her shape blocking a grouping of bright light over him, something in her hand.

"Yeah…I'm awake," he muttered and he tried to move his arms but he felt that they were restrained, along with his feet and waist.

"Good, for your safety we needed to sedate and restrain you so don't be too alarmed," she replied back, stating what was already obvious to him.

"Howcome?"

"Once you're fully awake we can discuss everything that happened, alright?" Jerking in his restraints as he tried to get up, he lifted his head and looked over at her with his now clear vision, beginning to get frustrated that she was keeping something from him.

"I want to know what happened. I've never felt like that before and I want to know why." She turned around suddenly; setting down the small tablet PC she was holding on a table without looking. Monitors and holograms littered the room with his vitals and different documents filling their screens. "Why are you keeping something from me?"

"I'm not keeping anything from you," Allara replied, motioning her hands. "I just didn't want to try and explain something to you while you were drugged up, that's all."

"Well I'm fine, and can you release these things," he said while pointing his head and the metal clamps over his wrists and ankles. Without saying anything she nodded and they released, presumably her personal AI monitoring everything that was happening.

"Do you know what the magnetic fields look like that surround planets? All the lines curving up and stuff?" Luke nodded. "Ok, well imagine that same principle applied to you. Ninety-nine point nine nine repeating percent of the Human population has an incredibly weak psychic field that their brains emit." She motioned to a monitor that showed a blank body with a single faint line emanating from it's head. "You and your team, and those you trained with, are gifted with an incredibly strong field. Yours is so strong you can sense those of other people around you and you can feel the changes in their fields, which is why you can tell what's going on around you just by focusing. But all of this was achieved by first taking all the plugs out and letting your psychic abilities go completely free." On the screen the lines exploded everywhere around the body. "The 'tiara' we implanted onto your brains brings it back under control in a way that was actually useful for you." The lines reorganized themselves in a pattern around him that was neat compared to the tangled mess that they had been.

"What does this have to do what happened to me earlier?"

"I'm getting to that. Your dream caused so much stress and emotion that you essentially unleashed all of your psychic ability at once. That began a cascading effect where you were no longer able to control what was happening and you probably would've killed yourself in the process or destroyed everything around you. I spoke to your squad mates while you were sedated and they mentioned almost feeling what you were feeling, particularly Katana who tried to move closer to you. Honestly, if it wasn't so dangerous it'd be something that I'd love to study more because it suggests that what we've done in the field is nothing compared to what potential you have." Luke remained silent while he ground his teeth over each other. "I've scheduled a consult with a psychiatrist to try and combat whatever is causing you so much stress. If this doesn't work we'll look at other options."

"Ok," he replied tersely and got up to leave.

* * *

"So…have you remembered anything else about the dream? What happened in it? How you felt?" Sitting on a comfortable couch in a dark room, a few incense smoking off in a corner Luke remained motionless as he stared back at the psychiatrist perched in his chair, thin glasses sitting on his nose in a position that wouldn't help his reading or looking around. His hands were flat on the seat cushions, a soft and rich velvet material that changed colors depending on which way the grain was going. For weeks Luke and the psychiatrist had done this dance and every time Luke had won. He'd be interrogated by the doctor who wanted to know what had happened and how he was feeling and Luke would be unable to remember anything of substance but he would throw out just enough for the psychiatrist to use and feel like he was making progress on Luke. There was none being made, however, with Luke entirely unwilling to discuss the intricacies of having killed hundreds of people and aliens, however much he hated them. There was no way this man would ever understand the marks it made on his soul and his mind and he didn't want to sit through him pretending like he did. But today Luke felt a little different and wanted to show the man his place.

"I actually remember everything." The psychiatrist took his glasses off quickly and set his papers down from their resting place on his cross legs.

"Really? That's excellent."

"Yeah, it all kind of came to me the other day."

"I'd like it if you would share it with me. Start wherever it's comfortable for you." Despite Luke playing a game the psychiatrist it was still uncomfortable thinking back to the dreams that he had regularly, although not as bad as the one that night.

"I'm in a white space with nothing around me and I can't move. I'm in my armor and there's this man that stands away from me covered in blood and he begins to walk towards me and grab and pull at me while he cries blood. While he's doing this more and more people appear and do the same. There are even Covenant mixed in as well, all of them wounded and bleeding. After a while I'm surrounded by everyone and I can't take it anymore and I start to cry. That's what triggered the incident." The psychiatrist nodded silently for a few moments, most likely analyzing and coming up with some abstract reasoning for what everything means.

"The inclusion of the Covenant is a very interesting aspect to everything. With the man and the other people it seems like you're being weighed down by the responsibility that's been put on your shoulders of saving Humanity. These people are calling out for help and you can't move because you feel as if you can't make a difference. I'd say the presence of Covenant would indicate that you feel some sort of connection to them, like there's some way we can work something out between the two groups." A small smile crept up on the corner of Luke's face but he didn't say anything. The doctor continued speaking for a little bit before noticing Luke's expression which caused him to stop. "Is there…something wrong?"

"Yeah, actually there is. I don't know what else to say except for the fact that I think you're full of shit." A shocked look came across the psychiatrist's face and he tilted his head slightly.

"Pardon?" he asked, almost shocked at what Luke said.

"You've never actually been in combat have you?"

"No…but this session isn't about me-," he said before being interrupted.

"All of those people in my dream…they're all people that I've killed. Humans and Covenant alike. Whenever I fall asleep or close my eyes I can see their faces staring right back at me and when I had that dream I couldn't take it any longer. But there is nothing that you can do that will make all of it go away. No tips or tricks for getting past a difficult time in my life. I was sent here by Dr. Allara to try and get all of this sorted out but it was the wrong course of action. If you have to tell her that I basically told you to fuck off, that's fine, I'll cross that bridge. But right now I'm going to walk out that door and never return because my duty is to Earth and Her colonies and I'm not fulfilling my obligation by sitting in your office whining about all of my problems." Getting up, he left the doctor's office without him uttering another word, still shocked at what he'd just witnessed.


	31. What Was Once Lost

**IMPORTANT AUTHORS NOTE: Throughout the story I've tried to stay as close to the Halo timeline as I can, with most battles taking place when they've been listed from sources. With the next few chapters I'm going to throw that out the window so that I can get all of my story elements lined up with the timeline without adding in 20 chapters of stuff to get to that point. So for now the current story is now in the early months of 2552, sometime around January or February.**

"What Was Once Lost…"

"_Lieutenant, your presence is requested at the briefing room. Top priority_." Luke was walking down the abandoned corridors of the Hive after working out, his towel wrapped around his neck where it was soaking up the sweat that was pouring off his forehead and down his neck. The female on the intercom was obviously not an AI, the tone of her voice was slightly tense and he had a feeling there was something going on or else they wouldn't summon him in the middle of the night like this.

"Understood, please tell them I'm on my way."

"_Of course, sir_." Thankfully his room was on the way to the briefing room so he stopped there and grabbed a fresh towel to wipe away the sweat and changed into his ACU pants and his black t-shirt. Stuffing it down his pants while he pulled the buckle tight he moved quickly but refrained from running. Finally arriving at the hallway leading to the briefing room he saw four MPs standing guard outside the door, all of them heavily armed and standing still like stone sentinels.

"Identify yourself!" One of them yelled and Luke stopped for a second.

"Lieutenant Sword," he replied back confidently. A moment passed as the guard in the front right began to manipulate his computer, using the glowing green monocle over his left eye as his screen.

"You're approved, proceed sir." Luke nodded in return and continued walking, the eyes of the MPs following him the entire way which made him uncomfortable despite the knowledge that in a hand-to-hand fight he'd have almost no trouble taking all of them out with ease. Stepping through the door that one of them unlocked for him he entered the briefing room and wasn't surprised at the number of people standing around the enormous holographic table. All of the lights were off except for the bright blue glow that enveloped everyone as a single planet hovered in the air at eye level, the unmistakable silhouette of a Covenant Assault Carrier and her escorts in orbit. Most of the people there were standing away from the table, dressed in the all black that signified ONI officers which wasn't surprising considering that the Hive was their turf. But Luke's eyes snapped to the tall man at the head of the table, his face heavily wrinkled and his head bald. Quickly popping off a salute, Lord Hood told him to be at ease and motioned for him to come towards them.

"Thank you for joining us on such short notice but the situation has deteriorated to the point where we can't ignore it any longer," Hood said as he leaned over the table, bracing himself with both arms. "This is Loki, the planet is worthless as a colony but during initial surveys there were some anomalies that interested ONI who set up an outpost on the surface. About fifteen hours ago a few of the sensor beacons picked up multiple Slipspace ruptures in the system belonging to a small contingent of Covenant ships, 8 CCS class to be exact. They patrolled around the system for approximately an hour before another ship jumped into system, an Assault Carrier. It joined up with the rest and they moved into position over Loki where they've remained for the past eleven hours."

"Sir?" Luke said, stepping up to the table, unsure of what relevance it had to him. Off to the side he notice that Captain Ambresio was present which seemed to suggest the _Kamiak_ was going to be involved with whatever Lord Hood was talking about.

"The ONI station reported the Assault Carrier's name from transmissions between the ships, the _Infinite Sacrifice_. This same ship was present at Charybdis IX in 2534 where it destroyed a number of Destroyers and glassed the planet."

"You want my team and I to board it?"

"No," Hood shot back, looking over at Luke who shunned away, suddenly feeling ashamed at his question. "Thirty eight minutes ago the ONI station sent out a distress call saying that Covenant ground forces had been deployed and were moving on the station. We lost contact with them shortly after the message." Luke kept his mouth sealed when Hood stopped speaking, not wanting to get caught again like last time. "The _Kamiak_ is the only stealth ship we've got at the moment and it's going to be sent to Loki to assess the situation. You and your team will be joined with a detachment of ODST from the 22nd Tactical Battalion for ground operations." Out of the shadows another officer stepped forward and looked over at Lord Hood who nodded at him.

"This station is a highly valuable target for the UNSC and Covenant alike. We need you to move into it and secure or destroy it but either way the Covenant cannot be allowed to have access to the contents of their research."

"What…what are we looking at here? Weapons? Vehicles?" Luke asked.

"That's classified," Hood shot back. This caught Luke off guard a little bit. He knew that they were treading on sensitive ground but for Lord Hood to clamp all of that down by saying that it was classified was something that Luke hadn't been expecting. The look on his face seemed to express this and Hood clarified. "Once you've made your jump Captain Ambresio will open a file containing all of the intel you'll need to know. We just can't risk the information getting out somehow before that."

"I understand, sir," Luke replied, sympathizing with their argument. "When will we be deploying?"

"Immediately," Captain Ambresio said, injecting himself into the conversation. "Your squad is being alerted as we speak and have been instructed to gather your belongings. All of your gear is being transported to a Pelican and we'll be departing on our own bird once everyone is ready." Luke nodded to Ambresio's explanation.

"Lieutenant, this mission is of utmost importance. We're counting on you and your squad to complete this mission with whatever means necessary." Lord Hood gave Luke a nod and turned around, the entire room saluting as he left.

* * *

Luke unbuckled himself from the Pelican and waited as Captain Ambresio stepped off the rear of the Pelican into the _Kamiak's_ hangar deck which was abuzz with activity. Over the intercoms the ship's AI announced that Ambresio had returned from shore leave and had resumed command of the ship. A second Pelican had followed them in that was hauling their armor aboard as well as a new weapon that Luke was eager to get his hands on. Stepping off he made his way over to the Pelican while deckhands were getting the door open and preparing to move all the gear out. Four large crates were stacked up in the rear holding the armor while they had a few small boxes in front holding their weapons. Popping one of them open he took a hold of the much smaller assault rifle than he was used to with the MA5B and the BR55. Looking at the tool markings on the frame he saw it was named the MA5K. Featuring a large rail similar to that found on the BR55, it looked like it was dropped on top of a MA5B that had been shrunken down slightly giving it a much smaller profile than the other weapons.

"Mmmmm, that looks nice," Dagger said, grabbing a second one from the foam padding that surrounded it. Shouldering it, Luke could already feel that the weight was much less than their standard weapons but it didn't feel cheap or less durable. It's smaller size would make maneuvering indoors much easier, something he would appreciate after the incident with his BR55 while trying to escape the building. His only concern was with the shortened barrel and how that would affect it's accuracy if they found themselves in a situation that would require the range that the BR55 could provide. He was sure that they would be able to adapt and make do if it became an issue.

"Lieutenant, please come with me, we've got very little time to get all of this put into place before we put boots on the ground," Ambresio said, standing next to the other Pelican.

"Aye sir, on our way." Luke led his squad away from the cargo bird and fell in behind the Captain as people ran about the hangar bay. A slight shift in the gravity let Luke know that the _Kamiak_ had left it's dock and was maneuvering out of Earth's gravity well to make it's jump to Loki. Glancing over to his left he spotted three black Pelicans hanging from their nests up in the side rafters of the ship. Even odder was the fact that they didn't seem to have any sort of windows in the cockpit area which was covered in the same black metal. He was sure that they would be let in on the secret in a few minutes so he avoided bring the topic up. Moving quickly through the halls, Ambresio led them back and forth as crew members continued to run around.

"_General quarters will be called during the jump. Please be prepared for enemy contacts upon arrival_," someone said over the ship's intercom. Marines had already heeded this call and were in their full armor along with weapons while they began to make their way towards the various checkpoints they would be defending if the Covenant found them and boarded. Capturing a Human ship was against Covenant military doctrine but there were a few instances where it had happened so it didn't hurt to be prepared. Ambresio and the Tempests finally arrived at the _Kamiak's_ briefing room and entered. A number of people were already inside waiting, a lone man sitting next to the holographic table in the center while a few more were sitting in seats behind him in the darkness. Luke motioned for his three squad mates to take their seats and he followed Ambresio down the small set of steps towards the table which sat in a the bottom of the tiered seating. It seemed odd and unsettling to Luke, for some reason, having so few people in this room as took his place opposite the other man.

"This is Lieutenant Bennett, platoon leader for the 22nd," Ambresio said motioning towards the ODST. He gave a curt nod before extending his hand to Luke. Leaning across the table he could see his light brown hair and hazel eyes in the blue light, a number of scars cutting across his unassuming face.

"Thanks, Sergeant first Class Meyers is my Platoon Sergeant in charge of Alpha Squad while Staff Sergeants Wahlen, Mueller, and Becerra lead Bravo, Charlie, and Delta. We'll be assisting you during your mission."

"Good to hear, I get the feeling we'll be needing all the guns we can get when push comes to shove."

"I second that feeling," Bennett replied.

"Let's get down to business gentlemen. The jump will be short at approximately three hours, maybe less if we catch a nice current. NAVSPECWAR was kind enough to get us one final piece of intel on the situation before we jumped so this is what we have to make do with." A screen activated behind them and a full color image appeared on it, criss-crossed by a grid overlay and identification information on the bottom right hand corner. The area looked to be in the middle of a large field of lush green grass with a number of large gray rocks protruding from the surface at the same angle and size. At the bottom of the picture there was a large cluster of purple and blue shapes, two especially large features standing out almost immediately. "ONI has determined that two Scarabs have been deployed the surface although they seem to have had a number of their weapons removed, suggesting that they may be being deployed in a non-combat role. An unknown amount of small arms infantry is on the surface and we can determine that Grunts are present based on the methane tents located here, here, and here," Ambresio said, pointing to three large purple structures off away from the main gathering, all of them connected to a number of large tanks by long tubes. "They also believe that these other smaller structures belong to other Covenant species which seems to suggest they are remaining on the surface for an extended period of time. A number of Ghosts were spotted on the outskirts of the enemy camp although there are no signs of Wraiths or other heavy vehicles." Ambresio turned back to the table and tapped something on a control panel and the map flickered for a second before the satellite image appeared on the table for a second before the entire area raised up in three-dimensions. He pulled the image away from the encampment towards an almost invisible collection of buildings to the North. "This is your target."

"How did the Covenant even find them there? It looks like just some tents and generators, with camouflage no less," Bennett said, leaning over the table and looking down at them.

"I don't know but it doesn't really matter. They were doing their research just over here," Ambresio said, pointing to one of the rocks where some equipment had been set up. "You will need to gain entrance into the research site and secure it from the Covenant or destroy everything in there."

"What exactly are we looking at here?" Luke asked. Ambresio hesitated for a moment and Luke thought that he was going to toss up something about it being classified but it then seemed like he was a little lost for words.

"ONI says that it's a large alien ruin that has some information that we can't let the Covenant get their hands onto."

"So…it's not Covenant?" Bennett asked.

"Negative. This is _not _Covenant. The briefing I was given stated that there is some sort of map room that is showing the location of a number of Human colonies, Earth included. Therefore the Cole Protocol has been enacted and we need to secure that data one way or another." Luke shook his head softly, not really sure he understood what he was hearing.

"Sir…you're saying that ONI researchers happened to come across some ruins from a new Alien race that have coordinates to Human colonies and Earth happened to be one of them? Where else do they lead?" Luke asked.

"Reach is also of concern, although the fact that so many of our colonies have appeared is distressing to say the least." Luke nodded his head in agreement.

"How is the mission working?" Bennett asked, moving so that he was across from Ambresio and next to Luke.

"I'm sure Lieutenant Sword spotted them on the way in, but we've been given three prototype Pelicans that have been modified into a stealth variant. NAVSPECWAR is assuring us that they would be able to drop your teams off almost on top of the dig site without being spotted," Ambresio replied, pointing at the rock again.

"If that's the case," Luke said, moving next to Bennett. "We can bring the three drop ships in here and maneuver over towards the entrance." He motioned towards an open area to the south, farther away from the Covenant camp up to the north, then swept his hand back down. "How is your platoon divided, Lieutenant?"

"We typically operate with four squads, one led by myself while the rest are commanded by my Sergeants. We also have two sniper detachments that can be broken off as well as three engineers who are typically divided between the four of us."

"Good…If we put your Snipers in the shadows of these two rocks," Luke said, placing markers for them on the hologram in just north of the ONI camp on two small hills overlooking the Covenant encampment, "We can have them provide a forward lookout for us. If your engineers come equipped with anti-personnel mines we can rig the area between the two in an irregular pattern. Any movement towards us by the Covenant force will get slowed down, hopefully long enough for us to get the hell out of dodge."

"Lieutenant, you seem to be preparing for a full scale battle," Ambresio said, sounding skeptical.

"Sir, it's been my observation that it's best to come prepared for the worst case scenario possible. It's likely that my squad and Lieutenant Bennett's platoon will be able to destroy the map without the Covenant ever knowing we were there, but if things get rough I want to know that my men, and his men, have an escape plan."

"You've made your point Sword, proceed." Luke nodded and looked back down at the table.

"If we go with three squads we can leave two outside for perimeter security and to assist the snipers and engineers if something goes wrong. The third can move in with us and provide security inside. Without knowing what we're going to be getting ourselves into I want some extra guns with us."

"Works for me. If it's alright with you I'd prefer to stay top side and make sure things run smoothly. I'll have Sergeant Wahlen lead the snipers, Becerra will coordinate the engineer detachment and Meyers and I will take care of Alpha and Bravo squads. Sergeant Mueller will take his squad with you into the facility." Luke nodded in agreement as the groups were placed onto the map. Two small clusters of soldiers were placed near the research site while a silver bar with a single diamond cut out hovered over Bennett's, denoting his rank. They both looked to Ambresio who would need to sign off on the plan before they could go and get everything worked out with their squads, although the Tempests had all just been briefed and were ready to go.

"Everything looks good." He stopped for a second and looked at the subordinates in the bleachers. "Can I have a few minutes with the Lieutenants?" A number of "Aye sirs" rolled out and seven of them shuffled out while Ambresio remained silent waiting. "You two will be all by yourselves on the surface, we won't be able to provide any support up if you if things go south while you're down there. Just know that you may be saving billions of lives if you complete this mission. That's all." Luke and Lieutenant Bennett both saluted and remained stationary for a few seconds before leaving the Captain behind in the briefing room.

* * *

Dr. Conrad opened his eyes slowly and wanted to shut them again and leave this living nightmare once and for all. He couldn't feel his legs anymore, the pain in his body going down towards his waist and then stopping all together and he knew his back was probably broken in at least one place. It didn't matter though, he wouldn't be alive long enough to need his legs anyways, at least that's what he figured. Every whiff of the air he pulled in through his nose was putrid and almost made him gag, the gorilla like beasts that were guarding him seemed to have an issue with hygiene and the stench of an entire pack surrounding him was almost overwhelming. Conrad opened his eyes again and could see their enormous paws all around him, a few pieces of purple-blue armor crudely strapped onto themselves while bandoliers of ammo for their weapon of choice criss-crossed their enormous chests. Two of them wore much more advanced looking armor, the blue plates shimmering every few seconds from the shield that was surrounding it. The doctor quickly came to the conclusion that he didn't like Brutes very much and felt sorry for the Marines who had to fight them daily. Back and forth they barked at each other in their guttural language, sounding more like they were clearing their throat of phlegm than actually communicating. He knew they spoke at least some English, though, because earlier he'd heard something speak to them in nearly perfect grammar with an almost perfect accent and they replied back with pontifications in English before reverting back to their barks.

"Fuck all of you," Conrad whispered, trying to bait them. The moment he spoke they all stopped what they were doing, a few of them growling angrily. With his eyes open he rolled onto his back using his arms, the point of the break shooting tons of pain through his spine but he remained focused. "Fuck your moms too, they're ugly." One of them leaned over to him with his teeth bared, saliva dripping out.

"I will tear you limb from limb before I remove your organs and eat them in front of you," he snarled.

"Try me," Conrad replied back, trying desperately to get himself killed. It wasn't to save himself from a much more painful death later, although it was a nice benefit, he just knew that by remaining alive he was in fact helping the Covenant. He'd been listening long enough to know that they were having trouble with the Forerunner facility and were resorting to force to get their way through the doors and locks but once they arrived at the map room they would need him, or so he heard.

"Gladly." Two powerful claws latched onto his forearms and Conrad was lifted up into the air, his sockets already being pulled. As he began to feel the muscle strain and tear he heard another Brute call out.

"The Holy One has ordered us to keep this heretic alive!" The Brute over Conrad bowed low and backed away as a white haired Brute with a distinctive Mohawk strode over him, a great hammer strapped to his back. Roaring he swung the hammer and hit the other Brute square in the shoulder. Instantly his arm tore off and purple blood sprayed everywhere as the Brute crumpled against the silver metal wall in the hallway they were in. On the Brute's shoulder was a single enormous golden pauldron that had a skull attached to it, looking similar to that of a Gorilla. The dark skinned Brute glared down at Conrad before giving the same look to the rest of the pack which had retreated away and remained silent and stationary.

"Tartarus, there is no need for such violence in a place as holy as this." The familiar voice forced all of the Brutes to their knees as they stared at the ground. Craning his head back, Conrad could see a phalanx of Elites standing in the hall wearing an unusual set of armor that he'd never seen before. The orange and yellow regions of the intricately etched plating glowed and shifted, matching the tall halberds they held at their side. Through their feet he could see something floating in the air, crimson robes wrapped over a small frame that was sitting on top of a purple chair. "Regret will finish his work here without us. I must return to High Charity and begin to plan our next attack."

"Anything for you, your holiness." Tartarus stood back up and followed the Honor Guard Elites as they left the hallway, the enormous Forerunner blast door opening and closing silently. One of the Brutes in the more advanced armor barked something and the rest of the pack shuffled out of the hallway, leaving Conrad alone as he sighed in frustration while he looked for another way to get himself killed.


	32. Is Now Found

"…Is Now Found"

Silence filled the air as Luke's helmet pressurized and he stared at the grating in the Pelican. Time felt like it had stopped with each breath taking an eternity, each heartbeat lasting for a lifetime. Every nerve in his body was active with the most subtle of muscle twitches catching his attention. A flick of his thumb or a stutter of his eyelid as he blinked, blocking out the HUD on his helmet which was activating and scrolling thousands of lines of text that were of no interest to him. His hands gripped the barrel of the MA5K and he took a deep breath and let it sit in his lungs until they burned and he exhaled and felt the his own breath roll off the front of his helmet before being whisked away to his air scrubbers and forced back to him to breath. The stealth hadn't been turned on yet for his armor but the JORMUNGANDR did a check of it's armor plating while it flashed through all of it's possible color combinations in a brilliant light show that was over almost before it began. Luke could feel the tension inside the Pelican, each soldier's heart beating faster and breathing harder while the adrenaline was being pumped into their body every second and the sweat beaded up on their skin. Every one of them had a distinct feel as they crawled across Luke's conscious, their pulses of psychic activity almost pinging their location while they tugged at his mind. The entire build up to battle was almost intoxicating for him and he absorbed every second of it. But the time had come for him to put his focus back onto the mission at hand.

Their stealth Pelicans had snuck past the Covenant fleet holding position over the research facility with ease and had already made their descent through the atmosphere down to a height of just a few feet above the deck in case there was any sort of Covenant radar or AA that might pick them up. So far there had been no indication they'd been spotted and it was looking like one of the more dangerous parts of the mission had already passed them by. Luke brought up the satellite image they had received when they arrived in system on his visor, analyzing where the Covenant had set up positions. Very little had change since they jumped which was a relief, their plan was a good one and he didn't want to have to change everything with time fighting against them every step of the way.

"_ETA Thirty seconds_," Bugle called out over their internal radio system. The other two Pelicans would've been given the same signal and everyone got up out of their seats and moved towards the rear door. The Tempests were given the lead spots with Sergeant Mueller standing behind them with his five men. He could feel their tension building but there didn't seem to be any fear in them, the same as his squad. All of them knew what their jobs were and what was on the line. If they weren't able to destroy the map then billions of lives would be lost, without question, sacrificing the lives of thirty-three soldiers was without question worth it in Luke's mind and he was comforted by the fact that he knew every one of them also felt that, even if they hadn't explicitly said it. "_Ten seconds, doors open_!" Cool air blasted the rear compartment as the door opened up revealing a dark prairie below them tearing past, a soft blue glow illuminating the individual stalks of grass as they swayed back and forth in the wind while others were pushed down from the Pelicans flying past. The two other birds were holding close to them, their completely enclosed cockpits making their radar signature almost non-existent, the glass windows replaced with screens on the inside which had Bugle both entertained and confused as he got used to the lack of depth perception. In a jarring maneuver the Pelican whipped it's rear around and dropped to the ground. Luke was already on the ground, rifle at the ready as he ran in between the two other Pelicans which were unloading their haul of ODSTs. All of the soldiers were dressed in black armor and were nearly invisible in the darkness, but he turned VISR on the world around him lit up as each individual surface was outlined with different thin colored lines and the ambient light was used to make everything seem as if it was day. Hundreds of years ago the advantage of fighting in the night won battles without anyone knowing what had happened to them. Now, it was the only way they could survive, using it to hide in the shadows and strike when they could, recoil when they were outgunned and outmanned. About a hundred yards ahead of him stood one of the enormous rock spires that were scattered around the surface of the planet. The pictures they had hid their true size as the granite rose up into the air well over a hundred feet with a steep slope on both sides. What made the entire thing eerie was the fact that all of the others seemed to look almost identical, as if they were manufactured or planned and not natural. Luke didn't have time to dwell on the features of the planet, though, his mission lay at the base of that stone.

"Charlie and Echo squads, fall in behind me. Lieutenant Bennett, do what you need to do. Keep me updated as long as possible if communications go FUBAR in there."

"_Copy that_," Bennett replied. With a subtle motion of his hands the other ODST squads split away from them and headed more towards the Covenant encampment while Luke led his squad and Sergeant Mueller towards the entrance.

"Nathan, what's the Covenant chatter sounding like?"

"_We're fine at the moment. So far there hasn't been any mention of us over their BattleNet, however their language is suggesting that there were, or are, some very important people on the surface. I can't figure out a location for this person but I continue to see someone referred to as the Prophet of Regret._"

"Thanks, keep me updated if things change. We'll deal with this Prophet once we've taken care of the map." Luke had never heard of someone or something called a Prophet before. He had long ago learned that the Covenant were a deeply religious group so he assumed that this person was a high ranking cleric of some kind, hardly worth the effort to locate. With his MA5K tucked in between his arms he lowered his head a little and ran at a brisk pace with the ODSTs who were keeping up admirably although he suspected that they would go whatever his speed just to show that they could keep up. At the base of the enormous stone pillar was a rather small area that had been cleared away with a dirt path leading down into the ground. The area around the entrance was lit with a few Covenant torches, purple poles approximately three feet tall that gave off a soft and almost imperceptible purple glow from a small crystal globe that sat at the top. A collection of Human and Covenant equipment sat near the path, a number of holograms hovering next to the large purple crates that belonged to the Covenant forces. Ignoring them he slowed down and readied his rifle, on the lookout for any Covenant guards posted outside. When he got a few feet away from the ledge Luke's VISR began to glitch out when the orbs around them suddenly came to life, flooding the area in bright blue-purple light which forced the nine of them to dive for cover behind the crates and other pieces of equipment in case someone was looking.

"What was that?" Luke radioed to the others.

"_I'm not sure sir, they may be proximity or motion activated_," Mueller replied back quickly. He was probably right but it didn't change the fact that they were completely exposed. Reaching towards the closest pole Luke took it in his left hand and braced it against the ground before he broke it with his boot. He motioned towards the entrance and hopped off the small ledge around the excavated area. At the base of the rock was a single roughly triangular door that was glowing a soft blue, the silver metal and glass completely pristine despite having been buried for an unknown amount of years. The internal mechanisms were completely visible through the single pane of glass at the top of the door as well as the two at the bottom that came up around the sides. There appeared to be a single locking mechanism in the center of the door which was glowing bright white and blue, something Luke hoped meant that it was active. He heard the others drop down behind him and they quickly fell in behind him as he moved towards the door slowly. His heart was beating faster with each step, this new alien piece of technology reaffirming that Humanity was just one of many species to inhabit this galaxy and so far they seemed to be low man on the totem pole. Reaching out with his hand when he was only a few feet away from it, there was a sudden solid clunk and pieces inside the door began to move and retract before the top panel slid up and the bottom two pulled away revealing a long and lonely corridor. Although much larger than the door the same basic triangular shape, the top and corners flattened out, continued with the ribbing visible beneath the glass panels that covered the entire hallway. Luke took a few steps in, his boots clicking loudly on the clear floor and was overcome with a sense of awe and wonder at the architecture which seemed to be a perfect combination of utility and beauty. Beneath his feet a beam of pulsing and flickering blue energy was being funneled towards the end of the hallway, the bright light engulfing the entire hallway.

"_It's amazing…_" Nathan said seemingly lost in his reverence as well.

"Focus Nathan, I need you monitoring the BattleNet for me, not admiring the view." He snorted when Luke said this, obviously annoyed at the hypocrisy but he focused himself and walked towards the end of the hallway. An enormous shaft sat in front of them, blue lights turning on and off in a pattern along the sides up and down the shaft which was so deep that the bottom was obscured by blackness. To his right was a holographic panel suspended between two small pylons. Suspended in midair was a collection of different colored glyphs all waiting for some kind of input. At first he had no idea what he was seeing but after looking at the designs for a few seconds they seemed vaguely familiar to him, as if he'd seen them before. Without thinking he let his hand guide itself towards a purple circular icon that had a number of lines intersecting it with a small circle attached to one of them. A few moments passed and he was afraid he had done something wrong when he heard engines deep within come to life and the panel changed it's designs.

"How did you know what to press?" Katana asked, opening a direct channel to him.

"I'm not sure, I just kind of…_knew. _Looks like we got lucky though," he said, pointing down as a lift came racing towards them. Slowing down as it reached them, the lift settled into place as the beam under his feet extended through a base underneath the main surface, locking the elevator in place. He took the first step as he walked out over the abyss onto the glass floor and tried to shake the thing to make sure it was safe. "C'mon," he said while motioning to everyone else. A new hologram appeared on the lift and he found the same symbol as before although this time it was accompanied by a reversed one. Pressing the upside down glyph the beam retracted and the elevator began it's descent. All of the sudden Luke could feel the tension and anxiety of the squads sky rocket, especially the ODSTs. It kept pushing at his mind and as he stood completely still and silent near the panel he clenched his teeth to fight it back. Focused on what they were dropping down towards, he peered into the darkness as a weak light appeared at the bottom of the shaft which he assumed meant that they were almost finished. Squeezing forward from the panel he motioned for them to split into two groups on either side of the exit as the elevator dropped down and rested. The door opened slowly and they remained in cover while Luke peered down yet another hallway that seemed to take them back under the entrance but now they were deep underground. "Two columns, Dagger and Sword you lead the right side I'll take the left with Katana. Keep your eyes peeled and max out your motion detector range. This is a pretty shitty entrance so I don't want everyone to be dropped at once."

"_Aye sir_," Mueller replied while Luke's squad pinged acknowledgement lights on his HUD. With his shoulder brushing up against the wall he continued forward carefully, one silent step at a time.

"Lieutenant Bennett, this is a radio check, do you copy?" All he heard was static and he tried to radio him one more time but all that replied was the popping and sizzling he'd been hearing earlier. He was tempted to have someone go back and act as a relay but it would be a death trap to bring the other teams in. Reaching the end of the hallway he pushed up against the wall with Dagger across from him with his rifle at the ready. Activating the door, it slid open to reveal an enormous chamber that sloped up to a large two part door across from them. There were a number of ramps that led to small terraces before rising up again with a single path leading up to the top, cutting through the terraces. On each of the terraces were seemingly useless barriers but after looking at them for a few seconds Luke wagered that the room was designed with defenses in mind, the terracing allowing each group to fire over the others into the single entrance. Floating high over their heads was a hologram of the Milky Way rotating slowly at an angle so that it was visible from the ground level. "Stay here for a second, this would be a perfect place to spring an ambush and I don't want us all caught in it. If anything happens let loose with everything. I'll sneak my way past and set the satchel charges and once I give you the go ahead you get the hell out of here." Everyone nodded and he rolled off the corner with his rifle tucked into his shoulder and scanned the barriers for any sign of Covenant. In the chamber he was immediately dwarfed by the enormous size of the room. It was easily a hundred feet wide and the main pathway up seemed to be twice that long. Like the rest of the structure, there was a glass floor that revealed more of the structure underneath where lights and beams of energy were going back and forth, a bluish mist hanging around. About halfway up the ramp he was convinced that there wasn't an ambush and motioned for the others to follow. Taking a knee to survey the surroundings as they came to him, he saw that there were a number of doors on either side of the chamber that led to unknown destinations deep within the facility. Luke felt a boyish wonder inside him with the desire to explore every nook and cranny but it wasn't their mission and every minute they spent on the surface increased the likelihood they would be discovered by the Covenant. With the squads forming up next to him he continued to lead the way to the top of the ramp and to the door that he had just barely seen from the bottom. The top was a large flat area with a number of intricate designs etched into the flooring all centered around a collection of glowing blue panels and a slightly raised ring that surrounded it. Luke walked up towards the panel and surveyed the area before he made a decision on their next move. "Sergeant Mueller, have your men spread out on these barriers here and here," Luke said pointing to the cluster nearest the main ramp.

"You got it sir!" he called back and the ODSTs began to spread out, keep their suppressed S7 SMGs out with their M90A Shotguns slung across their backs.

"Claymore, you stay up here with your SAW and provide covering fire. Keep your eyes peeled for the flanks because there are multiple entrances that you'll need to cover." Luke took a few steps back and was standing on the blue panel as he surveyed the room and weighed his final choice. "Dagger and Katana I want you to take position further down the ramp. This looks like the target on the other side of these doors so I'm going to go and plant the charges. You'll provide security-." In a flash of light Luke disappeared as the raised panel flew into the air and back down, particles of energy still hovering in the air and drifting away from the panel which was glowing brightly but was already growing dimmer.

"SWORD!" Katana yelled as she ran up to where he was just standing.

* * *

"In ca-," a sudden wave of nausea overwhelmed Luke and he peeled his helmet off and vomited all over the ground. Taking a few breaths, he felt another wave come and he dry heaved before wiping his mouth of whatever got onto his lips. Standing up to full height he looked around him and wasn't sure what he was seeing. Dimly lit, he could see two walls rise up around him where they faded away into the darkness above and around him. Protruding from the walls were large hatches with a single flowing light on the front of them slowly pulsing white in rhythm to the thrumming that seemed to come from deep within the structure. Pushing his helmet back over his head, it pressurized before Nathan spoke to him.

"_I've lost contact with the rest of the squad. We seem to have teleported to a completely different area of the facility_."

"How did that happen?"

"_I'm not sure, it's possible that when you stepped onto the pad back in the antechamber it was activated. See if there's another one where you arrived_." Luke turned around and saw that there was a panel near his vomit glowing a dim blue in the darkness. He walked back towards it and stepped on it but it remained idle. Hopping a little to see if it wasn't registering him there he stepped back off it when it didn't do anything.

"Well that didn't work.." he said, frustrated.

"_There must be some other trigger for it_." Looking around him for some other clue to get it to work he heard a change in the machinery and the sound of servos off in the distance. Using VISR he tried to find something to get behind but the area was completely devoid of cover so he pushed up against the wall and readied his weapon. He scanned back and forth to try and see something in the distance but he was coming up empty. Turning his stealth on waited in the shadows as his motion tracker began to ping something in the distance. Gripping his weapon tighter he turned towards the blip and squinted into the darkness but despite all his visual enhancements and his armor he still couldn't see anything. The blip flew directly over his location and zoomed off his tracker again towards the teleporter behind him and off into the distance. A it went by Luke thought that he had heard a soft whirring sound of engines or some sort of propulsion mechanism. All of the sudden the blip came hurtling back towards him and his VISR outlined something hovering in the air in front of him. A small orb like machine was floating in front of him with a brightly glowing green "eye" comprised of a single orb nestled inside a larger circle with a line cut down the middle. A reflective metal casing sat around the eye where it seemed like it's propulsion mechanisms and other hardware were stored. Luke's instincts were screaming for him to shoot at the machine but something held his fire and remained silent and stationary as it stayed in front of him.

"Reclaimer! Quis a voluptarius admiratio!" Luke didn't understand what the mechanical voice said but the language sounded familiar to him.

"_That's Latin_…" Nathan said, stunned at this

"What did he say?"

"'_He's saying it's nice to meet you. Does the title 'Reclaimer' hold any significance to you because it seems as if it's met you before._"

"No…this is the first time I've ever seen it before. And how can it see through my stealth?" The machine began to speak again and Luke cut it off. "Do you speak English?" It went silent for a few moments and it's light flicker as if it was thinking and the orb bobbed up and down, the only sound being Luke's breath and it's small engines holding it in the air.

"Of course. I am programmed to speak all known Reclaimer languages."

"What are you…and why do you keep calling me Reclaimer?" He asked, standing up and deactivating his stealth, rifle at his side.

"I am the monitor of this Guiding Flame facility. My creators designed this to serve as a beacon for you, Reclaimer." He answered the first question quickly but the second part seemed to stump him as the orb bounced back and forth in the air, it's light flickering again. "You confuse me with your second question. You _are _Reclaimer, what else would I call you?"

"_If this is an AI it may have gone rampant and is mistaking you for someone else_," Nathan whispered into Luke's ear.

"But please, follow me, there is much work to do. I have detected numerous intruders at the Cartographer and they have attempted to illicitly gain access to it's information. The Reclaimers at this facility previously seemed to be quite distraught at the information they discovered while activating it which seems quite odd…" the machine trailed off as it floated up and away from Luke, speaking to itself quickly.

"Wait! I need to get back to my squad. I was standing on one of those pads there and it took me here somehow so I need to know how to use it again and go back." The orb stopped and came back to him as if it was suddenly interested in what Luke was saying again.

"Of course Reclaimer! The teleportation network in this facility is quite a tool! If you just stand on the pad and speak the location of where you want to travel it will take you there instantly," it replied, flying back to the pad. Luke followed hesitantly and stepped onto the pad, ready to go back to the squad. "Oh…I'm afraid I can't let you return to your destination of origin. My sensors have detected that the initial intruders have returned. Protocol states that all Reclaimers must be protected at all costs and I can assure you that your safety is guaranteed in this sector. I will be dispatching Sentinels to the sector shortly to eliminate these intruders."

"No! If they're under attack I need to be there immediately!" Luke yelled back, getting his rifle ready. "Tell me where I need to go now!"

"I'm sorry but protocol-"

"Fuck protocol! Whatever it says I'm telling you not to follow it and let me go back. Bring your Sentinels with you once you're ready but I need to get into that fight immediately." The orb looked down towards the ground and shook it's eye back and forth before looking back at him.

"Directives from a Reclaimer take precedence…if you stand on this pad I will return you to the Cartographer entrance immediately. I will follow shortly with the Sentinels once they have been produced in sufficient numbers." Luke squeezed his fist in excitement and hopped onto the pad, his stealth reactivated and his rifle in his hand. "If I may offer one suggestion Reclaimer, please duck." For a second he didn't move, a little confused by this but he squatted down and held his rifle at the ready. In an instant he was consumed in blinding white light and the nausea hit his stomach just as an explosion threw him back against the enormous door that led to the map room.

**A/N: Hope you guys like the chapter. Just one note, I (obviously) don't know/speak Latin so I had to use an online translater which I know wasn't the greatest translation. I wanted that little disclaimed in there before someone goes off and translates it then calls me out on a crappy end-product, haha!**


	33. Kobayashi Maru

"Kobayashi Maru"

A plasma bolt slammed into the glass just over Luke's head and the molten material dripped onto the side of his helmet as lay on his side, still a little shaken from the teleportation followed by the explosion. Rolling onto his stomach he pushed himself up with both hands and ran over towards the nearest cover where one of the ODSTs was firing down towards another barrier.

"Oh God, Sword! What happened to you!?" Katana called out over the radio sounding out of breath.

"Long story, and you'll probably see in a few minutes." Checking his rifle, he scooted up to the edge of cover to get a look at the situation.

"Sir, Brutes came pouring out of those side doors and have been pounding us! We haven't lost anyone but they're pushing hard and I don't know how long we'll be able to hold our ground!" Ignoring the ODST for the moment, Luke looked down the ramp and could see the gray haired beasts lumbering back and forth between barriers while more were firing at them with their crude weapons. All along the walls were glowing rods from their Spikers as well as the tell tale craters and scorch marks from the so-called "Brute Shot" grenade launcher. A few were wielding a Plasma Rifle that he'd never seen before, a bright red color unlike the typical blue, which seemed to fire at an increased rate. Luke hadn't encountered Brutes since Paris IV and when he was there they were under the command of Elites and were being used as a blunt instrument against the Humans. But here they were being led by other Brutes wearing what looked like full powered armor and were using complex tactics to provide cover for their squad mates. Luke wasn't sure if these were just an elite band of Brutes but the threat they posed seemed to have increased a lot since they had last met.

"Spread out along these barriers," Luke said from behind cover, pointing at the slabs of metal which were already battle scarred and damaged from the Covenant weapons. "Stay safe and conserve your ammo. Don't let the Brutes flank us." Sergeant Mueller gave out specific locations for his troops as they spread out to the sides while Luke's team stayed in the center. Claymore was bouncing back and forth behind his cover as he sent bursts at Brutes who ventured too close to their position. Luke was still confronted with the issue of destroying the Cartographer to prevent the Covenant from getting the information. Over to his right was an ODST who he motioned to come to him. Scrambling in the open space between the two barriers he slid into cover and peaked over before getting closer to Luke.

"Sir?"

"I assume you know how to use these things?" he asked as he took his backpack off, revealing the explosive charges inside.

"Of course, sir!"

"Good. I'm going to get this door open and I want you to go in there and set the charges on anything that looks important. Once you've done that, come back here and we're going to get the hell out of this place." The ODST nodded and Luke turned his stealth on and stayed low as he ran over to the holographic panel and looked it over. He scanned back and forth for something that looked like it would open the door and he thought he spotted it, pressing the symbol. Sure enough, deep thumps and groans filled the air while the locks on the door slowly cracked open and it began to split apart. Peeking inside, Luke could see that the room looked even large than the one they were in currently. Sitting on the other side of a large chasm only accessible by a energy bridge of some sorts was what Luke assumed was the Cartographer itself. Composed of two parts, the top part of the machine was a large pillar that extended down from the ceiling with large glowing designs around it on various points, the bottom of the pillar appearing to be some sort of projector where bright white light spilled out. It's bottom half rose up from the floor only a few feet and seemed to have another projector house within it as well as an obvious control panel. The panel had two large collections of holograms flanking a glowing blue orb in the center. Further away from the structure were large arms that rose up from the ground and then pointed inwards towards the Cartographer which served a purpose that Luke couldn't glean from just looking at it. "Go! Go! Go!" he said, coming out of stealth and waving at the ODST. He gave a quick glance towards the Brutes to see what they were doing before crouching and running through the door where he then stood up to full height and ran towards the Cartographer. Luke turned back towards the Covenant troops and fired off a burst at an unarmored Brute who clutched his wounds and retreated back behind cover, spurts of blood still spraying out onto the floor. A Brute Shot grenade zipped over Luke's head and he dropped back behind cover and watched it explode against the wall where it left a large black scar on the metal. Another grenade slammed into his cover and the compression wave slammed into Luke's back and travelled through his body. Grimacing from the forces being inflicted on his organs, Luke shifted his position in cover and saw a Brute trying to sneak up. Another ODST popped up with Luke and they shot at the armored beast as it howled in pain and collapsed to it's knees, clutching it's wounds. Luke detached a grenade from his vest and hurled it at the Brute who watched the olive orb bounce of the ground before detonating in it's face three seconds after it first bounced. Looking down at the doors he saw more Brutes appear as Grunts began to waddle out, shooting their plasma pistols wildly towards the Humans who were completely unharmed by their errant bolts of green plasma. Luke primed another grenade and hurled it down the steps where it bounced over a barrier just as it exploded. Screams of anguish and a cloud of blood and gore sprayed out from behind the barrier as two wounded Brutes stumbled out. One was missing his left arm along with a large portion of the muscle surrounding his torso while the other had been peppered with shrapnel on his right side and had shredded most of his face. They were both downed quickly but the Brutes continued to push forward. Glancing over at Claymore, Luke saw him ducked down behind cover while he replaced the drum magazine. The barrel of the SAW was glowing orange from it's tip down to the fore grip which was putting it in danger of warping and bending if Claymore continued to fire for an extended period of time. Reaching back into his bag he found a canteen and tossed it to Claymore who nodded and cracked it open. Steam boiled off the metal but the color turned darker and it cooled off even more with a second splash of water.

"Conserve ammo if you can. Only fire when you need to keep them back," Luke said over the radio to his squad.

"_Sir? What's our strategy here_?" Mueller replied back. He looked back at the ODST who was still setting the charges.

"First we buy ourselves enough time to blow that map. After that we'll look at getting people out of here." He had picked his words carefully and although he didn't look at Katana behind him he knew that she was looking at him even though she had no idea what he was planning for them. Three grenades impacted Luke's barrier in rapid succession and the pain again surged through his body from the concussion blasts, a coppery taste hitting his tongue while he coughed. Listening through the din of battle he heard what sounded like a rope swinging back and forth and spotted the source as it sailed over their position. The Spike Grenade tumbled end over end stuck itself to the wall behind two of the ODSTs and Mueller. "GRENADE! MOVE!" Luke yelled and they dove away from the grenade as it's fuse burned away and the crude device went off. A single explosion blew the canister apart as it's enclosed spikes were superheated and launched away from the red and blue explosion. Angry gold rods sailed through the air towards the barriers where the ODSTs had been. One of them was still trying to get out of the way due to the heavy fire on his position and was hit with the spikes. Slicing through his armor, the rods lodged themselves into his chest while a single one burst through his helmet. The other spikes ricocheted around before cooling off and either sticking into the walls or falling to the ground.

"_Oh _fuck!" Mueller yelled out and slid behind the cover of his fallen comrade. Luke knew that the man was dead but he wasn't going to stop the Sergeant from tending to his man. Mueller put his hand up under the man's helmet to check for a pulse and pulled it away covered in blood, staring at his fingers for a second before wiping the blood onto the man's pants and reaching in for his dog tags and tearing them off his neck. The next task was the hardest as he began to pull the magazines from his pouches and check his pockets for anything that they could use. Mueller turned back towards the squad and slid a number of magazines across the floor towards the other side which was already running low on ammo.

"_Sir, charges are set_." Luke looked back at the ODST who was running back across the bridge towards them.

"Good job, get behind cover and then we'll blow the charges." A few seconds later he jumped behind the barrier with Luke and brought up his wrist mounted computer which was acting as the detonator. "Fire in the hole!" Luke called out and the ODST blew the charges. Six separate explosions rocked the facility almost simultaneously and the compression waves blew through the air and almost knocked the wind out of Luke's lungs. Bright flashes of orange flames boiled over the map as thick black smoke enveloped it, the mist hanging in the air blown in different directions from the explosions. The smoke hung thick over the control panels but already Luke could see that the top portion of the structure was completely undamaged although it wasn't charged so it didn't indicate anything yet. He kept watching as the smoke thinned and blew away but still managed to obscure the panel from sight. His heart started to beat faster as it dissipated and he could see through it well enough. That all stopped, however, when he saw the holograms glowing brightly and the orb still shining behind the clouds.

"_How's it look_?" Dagger radioed.

"Negative," Luke replied, sighing dejectedly. "Negative on the map, it is not destroyed." No one replied when he said this, all of them knowing that they had failed their mission. Remaining behind cover, he thought about what the AI had said earlier about helping them and having never shown up. Looking at his vest he had two clips left for his MA5K and a couple more for his pistol. Glancing over at the others he could see that they were in a similar situation which meant that it was only a matter of time until the Covenant overran them and got access to the Cartographer. "Nathan, we need to start looking at contingency plans. Can you get contact with the teams up top?"

"_No. I've tried multiple channels and the bandwidth just isn't there. If we want to get a message out we need to send someone up there to convey it_." Even with their stealth armor, the Tempests would have a hard time getting out of the facility without being spotted and he didn't want to take the chance. Then an idea hit him and he decided to run it past Nathan.

"Is the _Kamiak's_ AI monitoring the Covenant BattleNet?"

"_She should be, yes_." The Covenant's channel had proven that it had a higher signal strength or there was some sort of relay that was allowing them to monitor it deep within the facility.

"Would you be able to get a message across it for the ship to see?"

"_Theoretically yes. However, the encryption to listen and broadcast are vastly different. It will take some time to get the proper codes and transmit a message and without knowing how they relay information it's possible that an operator may kill it before it's sent out over the network_."

"As long as there is a chance we've got to take it. Do whatever you have to for it to work." Luke took Nathan's silence as a sign that he was devoting as many process cycles to decrypting the BattleNet so that they could transmit a message. He took a glance at his HUD which showed that his rifle had half a clip left, leaving him only about 110 rounds left and no sign that the Covenant were letting up. "I want Katana and Claymore to take the ODSTs and use that teleporter there and retreat within the facility."

"_Repeat that?"_ Claymore replied back less than a second after Luke finished speaking.

"This position is indefensible with the ammo that we have. Nathan is in the process of trying to get into contact with the Kamiak but until that happens I want you six to take cover."

"_Sir, my squad and I would prefer to stand and fight instead of retreating_," Mueller said.

"Negative, there's nothing you can do, at least not here. Leave whatever ammo and weapons you can spare and save yourselves." No one responded but the two acknowledgement lights finally came up after a long delay. The remaining ODSTs came together and began to strip off their ammo. They began to eject their shotgun shells one by one and piled them up before loading them into their dead comrade's weapon as well as another one that one of them gave up. They pulled out the last of their grenades and tossed them over to Luke and Dagger who slid them into their vests as Luke slapped in his second to last clip and popped off a few shots at the Brutes who were only being held back by Claymore's unrelenting fire. They slid the shotguns across the floor and Luke stopped it at his leg as he moved to a better position on cover. Thankfully the weapons had been outfitted with a rail clip which held a second magazine of shells for the shotgun which was completely full which left him with 16 shells total. It wouldn't be much but Luke hoped that they would be able to stall them enough for the _Kamiak_ to get news of their situation. A few seconds later the ODSTs had been stripped bare and the Tempests were peeling off what gear they could spare to give to Dagger and Luke. They had only gotten an extra MA5K magazines each and a few more for their pistols.

"_How do we use it_?" Katana said as she crouched down next to it.

"It's voice activated and you need to say which location you're going to. Say 'security' and you'll go to where I went." She nodded and got close to it, looking back at Luke for a second before disappearing in a flash of light. One by one the ODSTs stood on the pad and blinked away as the metal ring popped into the air and back to the ground. Claymore was the last one to go and positioned himself on the pad. Before he teleported he looked at Luke and gave a crisp salute. Luke didn't have time to return it before Claymore was gone in a blink of an eye, leaving Dagger and he alone in the facility. "Let's get back in there and get this door closed. Should hold them off for a bit longer."

"_Whoa…Elites coming…never seen ones look like that before_." Luke turned to see what Dagger was looking at and saw a column of Elites marching out of one of the doors and out into the open space of the entrance, the Brutes stepping away from the warriors with their heads to the ground. Their armor was something that Luke had never seen before, an incredibly ornate set of plates that shifted color between orange, gold, and red with small gold etchings all over armor. Their helms had two large fins that curved up into the air which pulsed yellow in unison with their enormous pikes that stood taller than the already tall Elites. They continued to march out and Luke figured that there were at least seventy of the guard had taken up position at the bottom of the steps. "_What do you think they're here for_?"

"I'm not sure but we'll probably find out soon enough." Holding his fire, Luke waited as the Covenant remained silent and stationary while a large white Brute walked out of the door, an enormous hammer in his hand. "Nathan…make sure you're getting all of this."

"_Of course, I'm logging it all now_," he replied quickly. The Brute strode out to the walkway, kicking the corpse of another Brute who had been killed with a loud growl. Luke had a feeling that this wasn't who the guards were here for and watched the Brute as he stopped and waited.

"Pathetic parasites!" he yelled in heavily accented English, his words sounding more like growls and barks than anything. "How _dare _you desecrate these hallowed halls with your heretical footsteps! You will pay for your sins when the Great Journey begins."

"_There's nothing in the database about a 'Great Journey_,'" Nathan said.

"That is enough Tartarus." The Brute instantly took a knee when this new voice, a softer voice with a light accent, spoke. Luke looked over at the doorway and saw a golden crown moving between the Elites but he couldn't see what was underneath it. "Again I am confronted by your kind in the machines of the Gods. Again you attempt to keep it's secrets from me and again I will find them and you will die, like the rest of you." The source of the voice came into view as an impish creature dressed in teal robes detailed with thin gold stitching around the neck and sleeves. The enormous crown rested on his head with a piece resting on his shoulders to provide more support. His chair hovered about two feet of the ground with an extension providing the source of the anti-gravity, two armrests glowing brightly as the creature sat cross legged. "Since the other Human we captured earlier managed to kill himself…one of you will be of some use for us."

"We will never surrender or allow ourselves to be captured!" Luke replied back.

"No matter. Your species will soon be erased from the history of this galaxy, damned to an eternity of hell once the Great Journey begins."

"_What is he talking about_?" Dagger asked.

"I have no idea," Luke replied.

"Intruders! Your presence in this facility is a direct violation of security protocols. I must demand that you leave this Guiding Flame installation before I am forced to take further actions." Luke looked up and saw that the AI was floating around him, looking down at the Covenant forces.

"Prophet of Regret, an Oracle!" Tartarus said, pointing towards the AI.

"I do not know why you are referring to me with that title. I ask you one more time to leave this facility or else I will be forced to take deadly measures in order to protect these Reclaimers." Luke noticed a change in the expression of the Prophet's face. Before he had been a beacon of confidence and strength but now he showed a hint of concern, a subtle change after the AI had spoken.

"Destroy it," Regret said, no emotion coming through in his voice.

"Your holiness? This is a relic of the Gods…" Tartarus replied, looking at the Prophet. He didn't respond and the Brute finally motioned at one of his subordinates who aimed his Brute shot and fired off a grenade at the AI. It sailed through the air and detonated on the metal casing, engulfing the entire thing in blue and orange flame as smoke swirled around it and sparks fell to the ground. For a second Luke thought that it had been destroyed but the silver orb flew out of the smoke with his green glow replaced with an angry red glow. A low pitch whine emanated from the orb which quickly increased in pitch before a large orange beam of energy surged from it's eye at the Brute who shot the grenade. It sliced the soldier in half as his legs fell away from each other and his body collapsed onto the ground with a wet splat, smoke pouring up from the burning pieces of meat that remained.

"_What is that?! Where did it come from_?" Dagger said, Luke feeling the agitation growing in him.

"I met him earlier and he seems to be on our side but keep your eyes peeled," he replied. The Covenant were still completely stunned by the retaliation from the AI who had returned to his normal green color as if nothing had happened. The Honor Guard, however, had taken up an aggressive stance around the Prophet while a smaller group had stepped forward to take on anyone who came at them. "We need to get to that Prophet, either to kill him or capture him. I don't think the Covenant would risk doing anything around him."

"_Agreed. I'll cover you._" Luke activated his stealth and left the shotgun behind, the weapon floating in the air like it was attached to strings. Hurrying over to the left side of the terraces, he moved at a quick pace down the steps before he reached the first of the Brutes, causing him to slow down and be more cautious.

"This relic is malfunctioning and erratic. While every loss of the holy creations left behind by the Forerunner is a loss to all, it is sometimes necessary to dispose of them in order to access the grander secrets they protect," Regret said, his voice swelling up as if he were beginning a sermon.

"I object to your assertion that I am in some way malfunctioning! My annual maintenance has shown ninety-nine point nine percent structural integrity and all memory cores have been thoroughly scanned for corrupted files!" the AI whined back as he flew angrily towards the Covenant. All of their guns continued to track the machine but no one dared to fire. "Protocol dictates that an escalated level of hostility must be followed against intruders. However, I will 'fuck protocol' as you put it," the AI said, mimicking Luke's voice when he quoted him, before looking straight down at where he was staying hidden. The Covenant turned their glances to the slight breaking of the geometric lines on the ground and walls that marked where Luke was standing.

"_Oh shit_…" Dagger said just before he stood up and began to fire. Luke leapt at the nearest Brute and slammed his knife in it's spine as the creature went limp from it's nervous system being severed. He ignored the rest and tackled the first Honor Guard that was close to him and jammed his pistol in between his mandibles. Emptying the entire clip in a matter of seconds, purple blood sprayed all over Luke from the Elite's head breaking apart from the enormous slugs plowing through it's soft tissue. Using his left hand to stick it to his thigh he picked up the pike that the Elite had dropped and plunged it into one of the Guards who had begun to come towards him. Howling in pain, it gripped the pike and staggered backwards into one his comrades who shrugged it off and came towards the Luke. Snapping his rifle up he emptied his clip into the Elite who's shields flared silver before flickering and dying after the last round left the magazine. Luke cocked his arm back and smashed his fist into the side of the Elite's head, crushing his left mandibles and part of his helmet. This didn't stop the Elite though and he swung the pike at waist level and hit Luke with all it's strength and threw him to the ground and into a barrier. He recovered fast as the pike came flying through the air and stuck itself into the floor where he had just been. Still using his stealth, the Covenant were having a hard time figuring out where he was at which kept the fire limited to a few errant Plasma Pistol bolts that flew close to him. Luke knew that his chance to get at the Prophet had come and gone, though when he saw the ring of Honor Guards leading the Prophet out of the main hall back towards the lift. He wanted to radio Bennett and tell him to attack them but there was just no way. Back on his feet, the Elite had pulled out it's Energy Sword and was standing in a battle stance, it's legs slightly spread out while it stood a little hunched over and ready to pounce. Blood was pouring from it's mouth but the wound was mostly superficial and wouldn't limit the soldier in any way. This wasn't the first time that Luke had encountered an Elite with one of the weapons but he had a feeling this one had received much more training than the one on Paris IV and so he kept his distance. Just as he was about to attack an orange beam of energy lanced through the air and burned across it's chest causing it to howl in pain and grasp at the wound that had cut into his organs. More blood poured on the ground and it stumbled around before falling to the ground. Luke turned around towards the AI but saw something different flying around. Larger, this machine had a center pylon with three arms that extended off from it pointing in towards a number of lights and a single glowing orange eye. Flying around almost silently it fired it's beam for a few seconds before shutting it off. More and more of the silver constructs appeared and cut down the remaining Covenant who tried to fight back but were thrown into complete disarray. Luke tried to locate the larger Brute, Tartarus, but he only saw the white fur of the leader through the door leading out of the facility with a few of his commanders in tow. In a matter of seconds the remaining Brutes and Grunts were killed in a gruesome scene of limbs detached from bodies and corpses cut in half, smoke still wafting away from the wounds.

"I am deeply saddened by my delay, Reclaimer. I am even more saddened that one of your kind died during my watch."

"He died fighting, that's all that matters. If you and your…machines…hadn't arrived all of us would've died," Luke replied, reappearing in the air and walking towards the AI. "Is there a name I can call you?"

"My name is Adjunct Impulse, monitor of Guiding Flame Installation Zero Nine. And these Sentinels are designed to be most effective at their duty."

"I need to bring back the squads I sent to you for protection," Luke said, walking back up the ramp to Dagger who was standing at the top. One by one the squad appeared on the pad and stumbled away, most likely suffering from the same nausea that hit him. "What is the purpose of this place?"

"I am glad you asked, Reclaimer," Adjunct replied, flying near head level with Luke. "My creators built these Guiding Flame installations in conjunction with The Sharpened Shield contingency designed by creators against the Parasite. These stations are intended to be a beacon for your species as they begin to travel throughout the galaxy."

"But Humans have had FTL capabilities for almost three hundred years, this is the first time that we've ever come across one of these."

"Actually, this is the second time that one of these facilities has been accessed. The Guiding Flame on the planet you call Harvest was activated approximately twenty-two years ago." Luke stopped walking and looked at Adjunct, his silver faceplate hiding the confusion on his face.

"The Covenant must've activated something when they came back in 2531. Admiral Cole's fleet attempted to destroy the Covenant fleet that arrived in station but they took heavy losses and retreated."

"There is no way that this 'Covenant' would've been able to use the facility, at least properly. There are a number of security measures built in that prevent anyone but a Reclaimer from activating any part of The Sharpened Shield."

"What do you mean?" Luke stopped when Adjunct floated in front of him, the ODSTs and Tempests watching silently around him.

"Let me show you, Reclaimer."


	34. Battle of Loki, Part 1

"Battle of Loki, Part 1"

Luke stretched his hand out towards the blue orb at the Cartographer's control panel, the orb rotating around with it's hexagonal pieces all having a different character etched onto the surface. Butterflies filled his stomach but his hand remained steady as it hovered just a few inches above it. Rotating back and forth it finally settled on a position and Luke stared at the characters for a second before just pressing his hand forward and hoping it did what it needed to do. A wave of warmth shot up through his left arm and the five points where his fingers touched glowed a bright blue, almost white. Pulling his arm back he turned around and looked at the other two squads who were watching him and Adjunct. Grabbing Luke's attention again was a sudden low hum that was emanating from the Cartographer that steadily grew louder and louder but leveled off after a few seconds. In the center of the two pylons there was a flash of light before thousands of multi-colored orbs exploded out around them and hung in the air, slowly orbit the axis point inside the projection. Lines began to trace their way between the different orbs which were actually small planets and stars grouped together in their respective systems. Small purple rings circled blue planets that were rotating around orange and yellow stars while barren green planets hung out next to red star. There was no way of knowing if these colors represented something but Luke was too mesmerized by the simple shapes to care or worry.

"Look…it's Earth," Dagger said, stepping forward with the entire scene reflected perfectly in his silver visor. He pointed to the outskirts of the star map where nine small orbs circled a small yellow star. The third orb, a tiny blue one, was highlight with a small circle hovering around it with red text coming off of a thin line away from the circle.

"Ahh yes, Eden, the resting place of one my makers and her greatest construct. The Garden was the pinnacle of natural evolution in this galaxy, the prime designate of her work in the final year before the battle with The Great Betrayer." Acid lined Adjunct's words as he spoke the name, an emotion Luke had yet to hear from him. "It saddens me to think that she never got to see how far along your species has come in such a short amount of time. But it also brings me great happiness to know that her ancestors are ready to pick up where my makers left off."

"_Soldier…I have gained access to a broadcast frequency within the BattleNet_," Nathan whispered into Luke's ear.

"Ok…" he replied, detached from reality at the moment. "Adjunct, I don't think I'm following what you're saying…"

"I apologize Reclaimer, there is so much for me to tell you and unfortunately due to built-in security measures should I be captured by the Parasite I am limited in my knowledge compared to the monitors of Installations Zero-Zero though Zero-Seven. My purpose is merely to assist you in the first steps of your journey, not lead you to it's end." Luke looked back at the map as the stars slowly rotated him. He spotted more of the notations on other planets, seeing Harvest with it's information flashing a red symbol next to the planet. Reach was also visible along with Coral, Sigma Octanus IV, a planet near Arcadia that Luke had never seen as well as another mystery planet in the Zeta Doradus System. Seven more circles appeared at different locations within the galaxy and circled small rings that hovered in the air but they seemed to be separate from the planets that they were located near. Luke looked up towards the outer edges of the map and saw a lone location marked way outside the confines of the galaxy. The ONI scientists had been right in their fear that this information would lead the Covenant directly to Human colonies since some of the largest remaining population centers were clear as day.

"Adjunct Impulse, there is a lot of information here that might lead to the extinction of our species if the Covenant is able to get their hands on it." He turned towards the AI who rotated to look back at him.

"Reclaimer, I can assure you that the Cartographer's database is completely secure from Covenant intrusion." Luke played with his tongue behind his teeth as he continued to debate himself in his mind. Without destroying the information there was still a chance the Covenant could break back in and get what they wanted.

"I understand and I trust you but I have orders from my superiors that say that this information needs to be gone." Adjunct Impulse was silent for a few seconds while he hovered in the air before he flew around in front of Luke.

"If this is what your wish is then I will follow it, Reclaimer. I only wish that we had met on different circumstances so that we may begin the process for which I was designed to enable. I will initiate the purge sequence immediately but final confirmation must come from you Reclaimer."

"I understand." The star map disappeared back into the projector and the lights dimmed as data began to scroll up through the air in letters that Luke didn't recognize. Adjunct hummed quietly as this happened and Luke looked back at his squads. "Go to the surface and link up with Bennett. Get him caught up on the situation and have the _Kamiak_ prepare to pick us up, I'll follow when I'm finished here."

"_Aye, sir_," Mueller replied and the seven of them ran across the bridge and left him alone with Adjunct Impulse.

"What will you do now that the map is gone?" Luke asked.

"Hmm?" Adjunct said, turning back towards him as if he forgot he was there. "There is much more to this facility than just the Cartographer and I cannot leave my post until the signal from Installation Zero-Zero has been received."

"I'm sorry that this is taking away one of your main duties but I need to know for sure that the information can't fall into the hands of the enemy."

"Reclaimer, it has been an honor to be in your presence even for these few moments. I am proud to know that the legacy of my makers will live on and will one day follow in their footsteps. I only have one favor to ask of you."

"Yeah?" Adjunct Impulse hesitated for a second before speaking as if what he was about to say wasn't allowed or would embarrass him if someone was watching.

"May I see your face?" Luke thought it was a sort of odd request but had no reason to turn him down. Depressurizing his helmet he pulled it off his head and held it in his hands. Breathing in the air without his suit's filters surprised him in it's freshness despite having been sealed away for thousands of years. The sweat that had beaded up on his short hair and neck instantly sent a chill down his spine as it got cold and whisked the heat away from his skin. Adjunct moved in closer to him as if inspecting him before pulling away after a few seconds. "Perfection. You truly are a living image of my makers." This surprised and confused Luke and the AI seemed to have noticed this. "In time, Reclaimer. In time."

"Ok," he replied back with a smile. Looking up at the data it finished scrolling and a message appeared in the same letters before. However, this time they fluttered and went into static before reappearing in English. It was a simple sentence asking if he wanted to go ahead with the purging of the database with two options below saying "yes" or "no." "Proceed with database purge," he said and a flashing arrow that had been hovering next to "no" changed to "yes" and blinked for a few seconds before the text disappeared. Nothing happened for a moment and then the two panels on either side of the pylons seemed to turn off and the humming went away.

"It is done then, Reclaimer. The Cartographer's star charts have been purged from this installation." Luke put his helmet back on and put a new magazine into his rifle.

"Thanks for all your help Adjunct, we wouldn't have survived without you."

"The pleasure was mine." Luke nodded and turned to run out. Before he reached the door to the battle scarred antechamber he glanced back at Adjunct Impulse who was still next to the Cartographer as if unsure what to do next. A second passed and he looked around and flew off slowly before disappearing in a flash of light of the teleportation grid. Running down the ramp, Luke hopped over dead bodies and into the hallway leading to the elevator shaft. It was still at the top and he called it down to him. He waited silently for it to finally arrive and jumped onto it before it had even docked and sent it straight back up. With the few moments of downtime he checked over his armor for any damage that might cause him problems in a fight topside but didn't find anything more than some cosmetic damage from shrapnel and his hand-to-hand fight with the Elite. Compared to condition it had been in after Paris IV and New Pittsburgh it was almost brand new. As he neared the top of the elevator shaft the radio began to become more clear and he heard Lieutenant Bennett's voice more and more clearly through the static. He could hear that he was organizing the remaining ODST against an attack as well as getting them ready to evacuate once Bugle arrived with the Pelicans. Once he was close enough to the top, Luke jumped up onto the floor and ran out of the Forerunner facility and into the morning sun that had risen over Loki.

"This is Sword reporting in."

"_Glad to hear you voice_!" Bennett replied back.

"It was rough but we made it thanks to the help of some friends. What's the situation looking like?" Long shadows were being cast by the enormous stones from the rising sun in the west, a slightly jarring phenomenon but Luke quickly ignored it and continued to make his way towards the ODSTs.

"_The _Kamiak_ is preparing to deploy the Pelicans any minute now and they should be on their way to pick us up. The Covenant seem to be mobilizing, however, and their lead elements may reach us before we can get picked up._" Out across the fields the Covenant camp was buzzing with activity. Light were glowing all along the Scarabs but they remained motionless in their compacted positions although the sound of their enormous internal engines was just barely audible over the open ground. Squads of troops were moving back and forth and looked like they were getting organized for an attack. Luke looked ahead and could see the black shapes of the ODSTs lying down on the tops of a few of small hills looking over the rest of the plain as it sloped away from them. Bennett's location would allow them time to see the Covenant moving towards them and when they did come they would have the higher ground. Further ahead he spotted the two sniper teams posted up in a small outcropping of rocks on the left flank and small shrub on their right flank. Spotting Lieutenant Bennett and his squad nearby, Luke laid down next to him as another ODST shifted to the side to make space.

"The Covenant might be a little pissed off at us. Well…more than usual at least," Luke said after grunting as he dropped into the cool grass.

"What did you guys do in there?" Bennett replied.

"They wanted that map and didn't get it." He slid forward a few inches and looked down the hill at the Covenant. A number of Ghosts had grouped together and looked like they were getting ready to deploy. "How'd that minefield work?"

"It's all set up between these two hills here," Bennett said, motioning back and forth between the sides of the hill line that they were taking cover on. If any Covenant forces came at them head on or even near the sides they would run into the minefield and incur heavy losses. Just as they were scanning the defenses the Ghosts moved and caught Luke's attention as four of them turned towards them and engaged their boost and came at them.

"Sir, permission to fire?" Sergeant Wahlen hissed into the radio to the two Lieutenants. Bennett looked over at Luke but he looked back at him and nodded, silently giving Bennett command of the rest of the operation.

"Take them out before they get to the mines." A few seconds of silence passed before the first sniper shot whispered over the plains, killing one of the Elites in the Ghosts. It's body jerked back into the seat and blood pumped from the wound just below the base of his neck where the 14.5mm round blew through the armor and flesh before lodging itself into the Ghost. It swerved back and forth for a few seconds before one it's wings clipped the dirt and flipped the entire vehicle over in a cloud of dirt and grass. While this was happening, a second shot rang out and dropped another Elite who slumped forward and the Ghost fell to the ground in a much less spectacular fashion than his comrade. By this time the other two had realized what was happening and were no longer driving in straight lines at the ODSTs. This strategy worked for a moment, however, when one of the sniper rounds sailed past the Elite and slammed into the dirt sending a large pillar of brown into the air. He pushed the vehicle forward at full speed which allowed him to trade one death for another. Reaching the minefield he continued past it without seeing the small black objects resting in the grass. Utilizing strong magnets, one of the mine's ripped itself up into the air and at Ghost. The mine was actually two smaller explosive warheads connected by a tether that yanked the two pieces towards the target. In this case the lead mine slapped itself to the bottom of the Ghost while the other part swung around and attached to the top of the vehicle. The Elite tried to bail out but the mines went off in a bright flash of light, obliterating the front of the Ghost while the Elite was shredded with superheated shrapnel and the hot gases form the explosion. Mangled chunks of the Ghost flipped and rolled out of the black smoke and hanging blue of the plasma from the explosion. With all of the sniper teams focused on the last Elite, he tried to escape back from the hills but nearly detonated when two rounds blew through him at once.

"They'll be on us any minute now," Luke commented, getting his rifle ready to fire.

"Looks like they're bringing the heavy guns too." Slowing rising up into the air, the Scarabs towered over the landscape as the morning sun reflected off of their purple armor. "This is going to get rough fast." All around the camp the Covenant began to coalesce and begin their march towards the hills. The Covenant's battle tactics were typically favored a much looser formation centered around Elites with a pack of Grunts or Jackals supporting them. This time they were moving in tight phalanxes with the Jackals protecting the front ranks with their wrist mounted energy shields while swarms of Grunts stayed behind. Elites of all different colors were ushering them forward while the Brutes were staying off in their own groupings. He figured this level of discipline was based on the presence of the Prophet who would demand the most highly trained and skilled warriors by him. Doing a quick count he figured there were at least two hundred Covenant moving towards him, possibly more because of how the Grunts were packed together.

"Nathan, get me into contact with Captain Ambresio."

"_Aye Lieutenant, one moment_." Luke waited a few uncomfortable moments in the grass waiting to be patched through. There was a frustration building in him as he watched the Covenant legions advancing but they were unable to attack until they were closer, negating the advantage of still being hidden.

"_Yes Lieutenant_?"

"Sir, I know that we discussed this earlier but we need close air support down here. I'm looking at a company sized contingent of Covenant moving towards our position from the south, supported by two Scarabs and it looks like two Wraiths," Luke said, spotting the purple tanks as they appeared from underneath one of the larger structures that had been erected.

"_We risk giving away our position by deploying anything else, Sword_."

"I understand sir, I just want to make the request. It's your decision. Sword over and out." He looked over at Bennett and just shook his head slightly and shrugged his shoulders. There was no way of knowing what they would decide and Luke couldn't blame them if they deemed it too much of a risk. Breaking the moment of silence was the sound of the Wraiths beginning to fire their plasma mortars at the ODSTs. Foregoing direct fire, the Wraiths would have to take a number of shots before they could zero in on their prey and Luke was hoping that they were still unsure as to where they had holed up. A solid whoosh echoed over the plains as the ball of energy arced high up into the air like a mini-star, it's blinding white light stinging your eyes before it hissed back towards the ground and slammed into the dirt. A huge pillar of dirt exploded into the air as whisps of plasma licked at the scorched ground just north of the mine field.

"_Engineers, get your rockets ready but don't fire them until they're closer_," Bennett ordered over the radio. Luke spotted a few of them getting the weapons ready while they shifted positions slightly. "_Snipers, fire at will_." Nothing happened from the snipers as they locked in their targets, scanning the ranks for the most important looking person to kill. Luke did his own scanning and spotted a number of Elites wearing white armor with black trim barking orders out from within the ranks of the soldiers. It all seemed so archaic to him for some reason, like a battle from early human history with the slaves being marched forward by a few privileged elite who remained in the rear. Had he not encountered the ferocity of a regular Elite first hand he almost would've seen them as cowards but he knew better. A single shot rang out quickly followed by another. Luke spotted the commotion in one of the phalanxes which was almost halfway to them already and saw one of the white armored Elites clutching his chest as blood sprayed between his three long fingers. A third round slammed into his unshielded body and blew a chunk of flesh off of his torso, downing him instantly. Luke was a little disheartened to see one of the nearby Elites seemingly assume command as the troops continued their march forward. Grunts were notorious for abandoning their post when their Elite commander was killed but they remained steadfast despite their leader being killed already. The first rows of the Covenant began to fire their weapons, the green bolts from their plasma pistols sailing past them wildly without hitting anything but the dirt or flying off into the air. This was the signal that it was their turn and the ODSTs began to return fire towards the Covenant in a constant but controlled burst of firepower. Unlike the regular UNSC forces who were more suited to defeating the Covenant through brute force, the ODSTs used their training and tactics to their advantage as each soldier carefully aimed each shot and made sure that it counted. Most of their targets were the Grunts and exposed Jackals who were unarmored and fell quickly. Their blue and purple blood sprayed all over their comrades and stained the grass but the phalanxes continued to move forward without stopping. Luke fired off a few rounds but with his ammo already low he could only expect to get another magazine or two from the ODSTs. He spotted some movement on the flanks and could see small clusters of Jackals sprinting away from the main forces though the grass towards the hills. Some were armed with Carbines but he also spotted a few hefting the much larger and more deadly Beam Rifle which served as the Covenant's sniper platform.

"Enemy snipers moving to the East!" he called out over the radio and marked a few so that the rest of the ODSTs would be able to see what he saw. The group of soldiers to his right had the best angle on the snipers and shifted their focus to them per Sergeant Meyers' orders. Clouds of dirt exploded around them as the Jackals continued to move into position and turned their attention to the Humans, their glowing monocles visible even from the distance. Their attention reverted back to the Covenant's main force which arrived at the leading edge of the mine field. Thunderous explosions rippled across the open air and enormous pillars of dirt were thrown into the air, blowing out large sections of the Covenant 's forward elements. Jackals dove for cover as the mines whiplashed through the air towards them while others were yanked towards the methane tanks attached to the backs of the grunts, increasing the size of the explosion as the gas detonated as well. Carnage reigned supreme for a few seconds as the confused and dazed Covenant tried to get a grasp on what was happening to them. The Elites didn't allow this to last for long before they regained control of their troops. With nearly a fourth of their soldiers killed or wounded, they seemed to order the march stopped and they began to deploy their portable energy shields which were thrown to the ground before the purple devices blossomed with energy and solidified into an oval on the ground glowing blue and purple. All over these were thrown to the ground, creating a line where the Elites remained and would not allow their Grunt subordinates to retreat past. The Carbine fire increased from the Elites who were beginning to inflict casualties on the ODSTs who were exposed just enough. From Luke's position he couldn't see how serious they were but over the roar of battle he could hear a few situations that sounded dire. By now the Wraiths had begun to zero in on them and their fire was becoming more and more accurate, the closest shots landing on the front side of the hill they were taking cover on.

"We're going to have to move soon. Those tanks are going to blow us to pieces," Bennett commented, pushing himself up out of the divot he had created in the grass.

"Agreed. I'll take my squad off to the right and reinforce Meyers," Luke replied back, already moving towards his team to get them to shift their position.

"We'll move to Becerra then. Good luck!" Staying low, the two Lieutenants led their squads away from the Wraith's fire and towards the flanks. Splitting the force into two groups wasn't the best thing for them to do, but Luke wasn't willing to watch their troops get decimated by the Wraiths who had almost gotten a perfect bead on their position. Luke was keeping a wary eye on the Scarabs who had remained stationary since they first engaged the Covenant. His hope was that they would be reluctant to use such a large piece of equipment on the ODSTs and so far that seemed to be the case with the Covenant using their ground troops to clear them out.

"Sir! Movement!" Luke's attention was grabbed by one of the soldiers pointing out a group of Elites who were leading their Grunts towards the soldiers. Luke jumped up to his feet and began to sprint towards their flank, grabbing Dagger as he passed him. Plasma fire hissed passed their heads as they sprinted the distance in a matter of seconds. More and more fire from the Covenant forced them to drop to the ground and focus on the Elites who were moving up the hill quickly, their shields illuminating when they were hit by incoming fire. The Grunts tossed a few plasma grenades at the ODSTs and they scrambled to get out of the way as the glowing blue orbs landed near them and detonated three seconds later. Taking a tight grip on the handle of his rifle, Luke began to fire burst after burst into one of the Elites who flinched and roared as the bullets slammed into him, eventually blowing his shields off and exposing his armor and flesh. A few more bursts and his chest had been torn open which sent blood and guts spilling to the ground. Staggering forward, it clutched it's chest before collapsing to the ground, it's comrades seeming not to notice this. Finding a new target, he threw the spent magazine to the side and slapped his last one into breech and chambered a round and continued firing at a new target. This one didn't appreciate the incoming fire and sent a hail of plasma towards Luke which splashed off of his armor, boiling his skin beneath the plating. Grimacing in pain but keeping his focus, the last few rounds found their market and tore through it's neck, purple blood pumping from the wounds but the Elite continued forward. Most of the Grunts had been taken out of the equation by the ODSTs, decreasing the incoming fire, but the Elites were only about thirty feet away from them and they were raking the top of the hill with near non-stop Plasma Rifle fire.

"I'm out," Luke said quietly, setting his rifle down and pulling his handgun out. Switching to single shot, he continued to focus his fire on the wounded Elite but his shield had come back up and the pistol slugs weren't doing enough. "Focus on the wounded one!" he yelled out and the might of the ODSTs shifted to him and he dropped fast as the rounds sliced through his already damaged armor and wounded body. This infuriated the remaining Elites who made a final push and reached the ODSTs who scrambled to get to their feet. A few weren't fast enough and the Elites unloaded with their rifles as they flopped back to the ground in a spray of their own blood. In a blur, Katana had jumped to her feet and was pushing in on the Elites to engage them in close quarters. She scissor kicked the one closest to her and he staggered forward from the unseen blow to his neck. She grabbed him before he could recover and put her hands inside it's mouth and twisted his head almost completely around. With the Elites in closer range, Luke pulled his shotgun out and fired a slug at one of them, obliterating it's shield and causing it to turn to him. Pumping in a new shell he fired it again and sparks exploded off the Elite's armored chest as the pellets cut into him, leaking blood everywhere. A third shell did the job and it collapsed to the ground but still wasn't dead as it kept firing it's rifle before finally succumbing to it's wounds. The final Elite didn't last long after being attacked by all of the ODSTs.

"How many?" Meyers called out, referring to the dead or wounded.

"Four KIA and Lee and Samson are hurt bad," someone replied. Luke could see the two wounded men twisting in pain but he didn't know how bad they had been hit. Picking up his rifle again, he walked over to the dead soldiers and carefully removed their ammo while the other ODSTs watched. He didn't like scavenging ammo off of dead soldiers but they needed every bullet they could get and the other ODSTs most likely wouldn't want to touch the bodies, at least not immediately. Setting everything in a small pile off to the side, he grabbed three magazines for his BR55 and another grenade and moved back to his position. Across the open space he could see that Bennett's side was getting hit just as hard, and now that the Elites and their Grunts were dead, the incoming fire had really picked up on their side of the hill and there was no sign of it letting up.

"Bugle! I need an ETA on your arrival!" Static filled his ears for a few seconds.

"_On our way boss, Covenant air patrols cut our initial route off and we're still coming around. Hang in there_." The pilot's calm drawl was welcome to Luke's ears but it didn't solve the situation that was seemingly getting out of control. Even though they had come equipped for a fight, the ODSTs just weren't prepared for an all out battle against such a large force for any length of time.


	35. Battle of Loki, Part 2

"Battle of Loki, Part 2 (Five Inches)"

"What's the word on the air support Nathan?" Luke asked, putting a new magazine into his BR55 and then flinching as a Beam Rifle shot lanced past him and cut down a small slice of grass.

"_There's nothing. It looks like the Covenant have just started blocking all of the wideband channels. It's possible they've located some of the relay probes and are trying to cut off communications between us and the ship_." Luke didn't reply because there was nothing he could do. Thankfully he had been able to get into contact with Bugle either before the scrambling began or they were getting around it somehow so they weren't completely cut off but it still wasn't a comfortable feeling.

"Sir, we're not in a good position here," Sergeant Meyers said as he dropped down next to Luke. "We probably won't be able to withstand another assault from the Covenant if they really want to push their luck."

"Understood, but we won't be able to make it over to the other side without taking heavier losses. We're not here to win, just survive."

"Roger that, sir," he replied tersely but without any hint of disagreement at the order. Keeping his eyes on the main Covenant force, he saw that smaller elements were moving out to reinforce their depleting numbers while a few more Ghosts had been deployed. With the engineers, the Ghosts wouldn't be a problem but the Wraiths were still harassing them and had begun to retarget their new positions which would force them to move again, making them vulnerable. Watching all of this happen, he felt something off and recognized the feeling of an Elite near him. Quickly rolling onto his back, he switched his pistol to full auto and raked the gun across the horizon. A few of the bullets found their marks and lit up the shields SpecOps Elites who had been sneaking up on them. A few of them deactivated their active camo and began to spray full auto at the ODSTs but miraculously none of them were hit as they began to return fire on them. Luke was still able to see the shimmers of the Elites who didn't turn their camo off and he jumped to his feet and rushed one of them with his elbow. Barreling one of them down, he jammed the muzzle of his BR55 into it's torso and fired burst after burst as blood and pieces of organs sprayed through the air and stained the ground. He howled in pain before slumping back into the soft grass, it's mandibles falling limp when it's head slumped to the side. One of the Marines cried out in pain from a stray Plasma Rifle bolt and Luke watched Sergeant Meyers fall onto his butt but still firing his BR55 with one arm, managing the recoil admirably. The shot hit him in the left thigh and blood was coming out of the relatively small hole but enough flesh was cauterized that it wouldn't be difficult to patch up. Now wasn't the time though and Luke kept his focus trained on the Elites who were losing the fight in their ambush. Pumping out more bursts, Claymore finished his target off with an extended burst into it's head and chest while Dagger and Katana tag teamed another. Three of the Elites remained and they continued to move backwards from the unrelenting hail of gunfire but something else caught Luke's attention. Out of the corner of his eye, he spotted a flash of bright light in the mid-morning sunlight and he looked over to see more Elites materializing from thin air around Sergeant Wahlen's position. "Stay here and finish up with these guys!"

"_Copy that!_" Dagger replied as Luke turned and sprinted towards the snipers. Wahlen had already spotted the threat and was fighting back. Throwing off the small ghillie suit that he had brought with him, he leveled his rifle without taking the time to steady his shot but fired anyways. The enormous round found it's mark and split open the Elite's chest and tore out his back where it continued to sail through the air. Wahlen was able to get a second shot off that blew off the forearm of one of the nearby Elites while his hand still gripped it's weapon. His spotter had tried to take one of the four remaining Elites but he quickly fell when an Energy Sword was plunged into his torso, killing him instantly. Luke was running across the open ground but was forced down when a searing purple beam of light cut through the air just a few inches away from his face plate. He slammed down onto his stomach and grunted as some of the air was forced out of his lungs but he kept crawling forward through the grass before Luke tried to push himself back up only to be forced down by two more shots narrowly missing him. The Jackal snipers had gotten a bead on him and he knew there was no way he'd be able to get to Wahlen in time. The Elites had slowed their advance on him, though, as he swung his rifle back and forth which caused them to stop in their tracks.

"Get some fire on those Jackals! I'm pinned!" There was no time to wait though and he shifted all of his shielding to his left side to absorb the brunt of the shot. Bear crawling up to full height he ran across the open ground as the beam shots began to zip past him. One found it's mark in his torso and nearly intolerable heat burned the left side of his stomach and through him back to the ground, stunned with pain. Blinking and coughing up more blood, he crawled forward, unable to move as his suit filled the small wound with biofoam.

"_That beam rifle round burned a hole in the side of your torso. Your suit is still pressurized and integrity is holding but you can't take another one of those, even with full shielding_," Nathan warned.

"Yeah…" Luke hissed, gripping his left side as he ran hunched over down the back side of the hill. All he wanted to do was take a moment to rest before getting back into the fight but he knew that wasn't an option. But looking up at the hill it was clearly too late for the Sergeant.

"C'mon you assholes!" he called out, firing off another couple of rounds at them.

"You insolent _maggot!_" One of the Elites called back and jumped forward with his Energy sword. Wahlen moved in an instant and smashed the butt of his rifle into the Elite's face who was stunned for a moment, just long enough for the ODST to bring the rifle down like a hammer on his sword hand. The hilt dropped to the ground and Wahlen grabbed it and in one swift motion stabbed his attacked in the middle of his chest, the Elite's fleshing burning away in ;thin wisps of acrid smoke. Two more of the Elites charged in and he cleaved his sword at them, missing the first but connecting with the second. The super heated gas easily sliced through part of the Elite's head and it flopped to the ground along with one of his mandibles, quickly followed by the rest of the body. The move left him exposed to the side and the first Elite took advantage of this and stabbed Wahlen in the side. He cried out in pain and fell to the ground but was miraculously still alive.

"It was so worth it…killing each one of you little pricks," he said as he lay on the ground, blood pouring from the wounds. The two remaining Elites circled their prey, mandibles clicking and swords dragging through the dirt. The larger of the two bent down and grabbed him by the neck and lifted him up in the air.

"I will use your women as nothing more than food to divvy out to the Unggoy, even that is more of an honor than your pitiful and heretical kind deserve." Wahlen thrashed back and forth in the strong grip of the Elite but there was no chance for escape. Had the Elite paid more attention to Sergeant Wahlen he might've noticed his eyes dart to the side and the subtle shake of his head as Luke melted into the air and began to limp towards them. He knew that he was dying and there was no point in trying to rescue him.

"You're so fucked," he replied back, the Elite not knowing the curse and just snorting in return. He pulled his sword back and thrust it deep into Wahlen who lashed out at the momentary pain before going limp in the Elite's arm. The Covenant soldier lifted him higher in the air as a trophy and was oblivious as Luke's arms slowly came around the front of his face. There was a moment of fear in the Elite's heart as Luke's fingers wrapped around his right set of mandibles while his left arm provided the counter on the left shoulder. One swift motion of his arms and the Elite's head popped out of place and the muscles and tendons in it's neck tore and blood splashed onto the ground. Luke swung the shotgun off of his back and fired a slug into the other Elite who was stunned at the sight of his comrade's neck nearly exploding apart from some unseen enemy and was even more shocked when his chest cavity opened up from the blast in front of him. Two more shots left the soldier nearly indistinguishable as Luke moved back towards Wahlen who had landed near the trees that they had been using as cover. Luke scooped the soldier up with one arm and made his way back towards the other ODSTs who had succeeded and putting the Jackals down to reduce the incoming sniper fire. He made his way back to the ODSTs and placed Wahlen's body on to ground softly to let his comrades take a moment while Katana moved quickly over to Luke where the enormous burn mark was painfully visible.

"Oh Sword…" she said as he took a knee with his breathing becoming more painful. He felt her hands gently touch his side and he winced behind his mask but remained motionless on the outside.

"I'm alright. The suit wasn't breached and the Biofoam is taking care of anything inside." Her hands still moved across the soft armor around his stomach before she pulled them back, shivers running up Luke's spine.

"Wraith's are repositioning! Incoming!" Those words snapped Luke back to attention and he was onto his feet, head on a swivel as he watched the plasma mortars come sailing towards them. For a moment his mind flashed back to Paris IV and the injuries he sustained and the damage it caused.

"MOVE! Regroup over there!" he yelled, dropping a waypoint back towards where they had originally been with Bennett. They had to leave the dead behind while the wounded were dragged but they got out of the way as the angry white ball of energy slammed into the ground and incinerated the earth and grass around it. The heat could be felt despite the distance from the explosion and Luke was glad to be as far away as possible from it.

"_Lieutenant Sword, Bugle here, get your men ready while we make final approach_." A moment after Bugle drawled across the radio, three blips appeared on his HUD marking where the Pelicans were at. Moving in from the East they were still a good distance away but they would be moving at full speed and would be able to cover the distance relatively quickly.

"Copy that Bugle, we're ready and waiting." Luke dropped a new waypoint on Bennett's position and the ODSTs followed him and the Tempests across the backside of the hill towards the other half of the platoon. They had managed a little better with only three dead and a few more wounded. Shell casings littered the ground and steam was still rising up from the dew that was melting away from the increasing temperature and the scalding metal. The Covenant troops had adjusted their fire accordingly and made it increasingly more difficult for the Humans to return fire. Luke moved up on his stomach to the hill and began peppering the Covenant with fire, downing a few of the braver Grunts and Jackals who had pushed their luck and had left the safety of their shields and companions. He didn't do this for long before the Pelicans snuck up behind them and were preparing to land in the open space slightly to the north of their current position. Luke had gotten onto his back and was hopping up to his feet, unable to hear the build-up of plasma behind him but he snapped around when the air rattled from the discharge and a blinding beam of energy cut through the air from one of the Scarabs and enveloped the last Pelican in blue and green energy before it dissipated. The Pelican exploded immediately and showered the ground in pieces of molten metal and other pieces of burning wreckage, the main portion falling to the ground like a rock trailed by thick black smoke.

"_Oh SHIT_!" Bugle said, his Pelican dropping down behind the hill and out of sight of the terrifying Covenant war machine.

"How the fuck did we not see that thing coming?!" Bennett cried out, not panicked but seemingly angry at himself. No one said anything for a bit but Luke knew now wasn't the time to be trying to figure it out, especially if the Covenant were planning on mobilizing it and sending it after them.

"Get as many of your men onto those Pelicans as possible," Luke said, pointing at the sleek black craft slumped over in the field, the wreckage of their wingman still burning near them. "Wounded first." The ODSTs quickly set about getting their wounded teammates moving towards the Pelicans and got them into the rear while the rest piled in. Despite their losses there were still too many ODSTs to cram into the rear compartment and with so many wounded taking up extra space the Pelicans would need to make another trip to get the last of the group. Seven or eight people would have to stay behind but that number was reduced down to four with the Tempests staying on the ground. Bennett was refusing to get on board as well and three more were chosen from volunteers who had stepped forward. The entire process took only a few seconds and those staying behind had already been chosen while the ODSTs were still getting on board. "Corporal, give me your weapon and ammo," Luke said, pointing at the engineer's rocket launcher and a small case that was strapped to his back. Taking the black rocket launcher and two spare rockets, Luke tossed his nearly empty backpack to the ground to prevent any sort of restriction and took the case and had Dagger slip it into the bungie cords that criss-crossed the back of his load bearing vest. Ammo was left on the ground and the remaining soldiers began to divvy it up.

"_Lieutenant, we're going to get the hell out of here and be back to pick you and your boys up_," Bugle radioed to Luke. "_The skipper deployed four Longswords to bring the hurt in on the Covenant_."

"That's good to hear. Just stay safe and get them back in one piece, we'll be trying to stay alive." Doing a quick visual check to make sure the people staying behind were set up, Luke scooped up the ammo and tossed it into his vest and then attached the rocket launcher onto the side of his back. "Move out. Stay close to these outcroppings and keep your eyes peeled on our asses. Bennett, you take the lead."

"Copy that." Bennett twirled his hand in the air and motioned towards the North East to one of the rocks near the entrance to the Forerunner complex. The ODSTs were running just below a full sprint which was almost a brisk jog for Luke and the Tempests which was good because it allowed him and Claymore to stop every few seconds to scan their rear and then catch back up with everyone else. Their main threat had shifted from the ground forces who wouldn't be able to keep up with their speed on foot and was now instead focused on the Scarab and the Ghosts that had been mobilized. Sure enough when they stopped at the base of the first rock Luke could feel the rhythmic vibrations of the Scarab pounding it's enormous feet into the ground. But his assumption about the ground forces leaving them alone had quickly been proven wrong when Elites came barreling over the top of the hills they had been defending earlier and they instantly began to open fire with Carbines on their location. The radioactive green rounds hissed past them but the distance and the Elites' movement combined killed their accuracy and there was very little danger. A few Jackals came over in their combination of sprinting and hopping with the oversized Beam Rifle in their hands.

"Keep moving, we've got enough distance on them at the moment," Luke said and they kept going again, no one saying a word in response. He caught a glimpse of a pair of Ghosts appearing but he didn't want to waste a rocket at this distance.

"_Fury One, this is Angel Six-Two on station. Inbound on bearing three-one_." The Longsword pilot's voice was firm and confident as it popped over their radio channel. Luke hadn't been referred to by his call-sign before and it caught him off guard for a second before he radioed back.

"Angel Six-Two this is Fury One. We are moving North Northeast on grid Lima Eight-Four. I have visuals on mixed infantry and armored targets and an airstrike, advise danger close. There's a fucking Scarab chasing after us_!_"

"_Roger that Fury One, airstrike inbound_." Off in the horizon were four small black dots sliding low on the horizon to prepare for their attack run. With the rock now obscuring their vision Luke was unable to see the Covenant forces following him but was able to spot the enormous Scarab peaked over the hill and kept climbing up so that it was fully visible. He focused back on the ODSTs as they kept running forward, the Longswords now closer and closer before their engines began to make the air boil while they howled at full power. The Scarab began to charge it's main cannon again, the flower pedals spreading apart and plasma particles pulled into the center collector but it wasn't allowed to fire when two missiles flew over Luke's head into the main cannon. Two orange explosions rolled across the pedals which detached from their housings and collapsed to the ground. Plasma blossomed out in angry tendrils before it dripped to the ground from the now useless main cannon. The danger it posed still wasn't gone, the Scarab still bristling with mounted turrets and the soldiers that were scrambling around on the top as well as its smaller turret that was sill operational on the top of its back. The first two Longswords screamed past the ODSTs and Tempests, machine guns firing at full speed and the bomb bays open while air-to-ground missiles dropped from the racks and flew into the Covenant forces. Enormous 30mm rounds shredded the ground in enormous pillars of dirt and flesh before they were engulfed in the missile strikes and the concussion blasts that pounded the air. Angel Six-Two and his wingman veered up into the air and peeled away from the Scarab while the other two unleashed their fury on the walking weapons platform but their effect was much less than what they threw at the infantry. Not everyone had been caught in the firestorm and Elites and Jackals still appeared from the smoke and debris to chase after the ODSTs. The two Ghosts managed to get away unscathed and made a push to catch up to them. Luke stopped and dropped to one knee to steady his aim while the reticule appeared on his HUD and zoomed in on the lead Ghost.

"Closer…closer…c'mon…" he mumbled to himself before squeezing the trigger, sending the rocket leaping from the tube. It's heat seeking warhead was already locked onto the vehicle and zigzagged through the air before slamming into the nose before it exploded inside vehicle. The red and orange explosion tore the purple metal apart before the plasma canister exploded and showered the area in metal. Luke waited for the M19 to rotate canisters before he locked onto the other Ghost and destroyed it in a similar display of light and sound.

"Nice shot!" Bennett called out, turning around while he kept running to watch Luke's attack on the Ghosts.

"_Miss me? Just got your current coordinates from Nathan and I'm inbound to get you out of there. Just hang tight for a bit and we'll be on our way home!_" Bugle radioed in.

"Copy that," he replied back and they took cover near the base of another stone spire.

"_We're making one more pass on the Scarab before we're empty_," Angel Six-Two said, the Longswords making their way back towards the enormous machine which was getting close. Another barrage of missiles were aimed at one of the rear joints where the armor was weakest and after all four had launched their payload into the joint alarms began to blare and sirens were flashing as the back right leg buckled and wobbled while sparks exploded out of the torn up metal and it finally gave way as the Scarab collapsed onto it's side. Luke was relieved to see the machine on the ground but they were still in danger until Bugle picked them up.

"Let's set up a loose perimeter and-," Lieutenant Bennett froze mid-sentence and for a moment Luke didn't know why. Looking at his chest he saw green smoke trailing up from a quarter sized hole in his breastplate where dark crimson blood was pouring out. Luke turned around to find who had show the Carbine round but all he saw was a collection of Elites and Jackals standing in the distance, no longer pursuing them. The Lieutenant collapsed to the ground and Luke pulled Bennett's helmet off, blood streaming from between his lips as his eyes stopped focusing and went into a thousand yard stare. He pried the armor off his chest and grabbed the can of Biofoam that Katana hastily removed from her bag, sticking the nozzle into the wound and releasing the foam until it overflowed. Bennett flinched and gasped from the pain of the foam but he went limp again after it was finished filling out.

"Stay focused on me," Luke said, kneeling next to his head. The Lieutenant nodded his head absentmindedly but Luke knew that he wasn't paying attention and he was crashing fast. Cursing, he stood up and saw the Pelican coming in to land and he scooped Bennett up and ran towards the landing zone before Bugle had even set down for him and he jumped up into the passenger compartment and laid him down on the floor. Blood was still leaking through the foam and pooling up underneath him without any sign of letting up. "Bugle! Get us out of here! We've got a seriously wounded case here!"

"_Wilco_!" Luke was slammed into the deck of the Pelican from the G-forces but recovered and went back to tending to the Lieutenant. He felt helpless as he kept the pressure on the wound with no other tools to tend to the wound any more than he was currently. The color was beginning to slowly leave Bennett's face with every second that the blood continued to pump out and Luke grabbed a second canister of foam from the Pelican's medkit and slid the nozzle into the side of the wound and pushed some of the muscles away to try and seal the wound better and let it pump in until there was nothing left in the canister, wiping the excess foam off of his chest. "_Medical teams are waiting for us to arrive; they'll take care of him when we land_."

"Tell them that it is a radioactive Carbine round that is still imbedded in the chest cavity," Luke replied quickly, wiping the thick blood off his gloves onto his vest while he took a wad of gauze from Katana and wrapped it around his torso. The flight to the _Kamiak_ was over in what seemed like an instant and the Pelican landed in the middle of the hangar. The rear door opened slowly and nurses and doctors were standing a few feet away from the Pelican with a gurney and bags of medical supplies waiting to be cracked open. They began to move towards Luke but he picked up the Lieutenant and carried him to the gurney while the medical staff rushed him off the hangar deck, already working on him. Standing alone for a few moments, Luke looked down at his arms and front of his armor which was covered in the blood of Lieutenant Bennett and he hung his shoulders.

* * *

Luke was lying on his right side with the left side of his pants pulled down to his thighs and his shirt lying on the bed with him. A nurse was standing in front of him while she pulled gloves on and gingerly touched the skin around the Beam Rifle wound on his side. The burn was easily the size of a dinner plate, if not larger, and in the center of the red and black wound was a small area where his flesh had almost instantly vaporized. She winced slightly when her fingers reached the epicenter of the wound where the beam rifle hit as the slightest amount of pressure produced a small pool of pus and blood to come out. Luke couldn't actually feel anything in and around the center, his nerves singed away, but as her fingers softly spread away the pain was immense and he had to grit his teeth.

"Despite how bad the wounds look Lieutenant, it's nothing a few skin grafts can't fix. The center wound will probably require a minor surgery to remove the dead muscle but we'll get some flash clones going now that we can transplant in as a seed for regrowth."

"Thanks," he replied with a smile as she did another quick examination and made a note on her datapad.

"You can pull your skivvies back up, I need to do some examinations of your chest now." He reached down and pulled the boxers up and rolled onto his back as she maneuvered a small x-ray over him and began to scan his stomach. The door to his left opened up and Dagger walked in with a grim look on his face and Luke already could guess what he was about to tell him. That didn't stop him keeping his mouth shut till he walked up next to the table and put his knuckles onto the sterile paper that covered the padding and metal structure.

"He didn't make it," Dagger said, shaking his head a little. "When the slug hit the breastplate some of it fractured apart and acted like a grenade inside his chest and just spewed shrapnel all over. A few got lodged into his lungs and started to eat away at them while a few more found their way to his heart. Doctors said they took out what they could but with the combination of the radiation, trauma, and blood loss there was nothing they could do to prevent him from having complete system failure." Luke remained emotionless as the nurse watched live images of his internals, making notes every few seconds. He shook his head for a second.

"Five inches."

"What?" Dagger asked.

"Five inches to the left and it would've bounced off my shields." Dagger didn't say anything as he rapped his knuckles on the exposed metal next to the pad. Before he reached the door he stopped and turned around.

"Don't go down that road, you'll never be able to come back if you do."


	36. The Pitch

"The Pitch"

The only light in the room came from the bright holographic display that Luke was hunched in front of, the only sound coming from his fingers pecking away at the touch screen keyboard that he had set down on the desk as well as the quite purring of the various fans cooling off the electronic equipment. His eyes were stinging and strained from staring at the screen but he was determined to finish writing his reports on the mission on Loki. Not for himself, he had typically let Nathan transcribe the mission based off the footage from the onboard camera because whoever debriefed him usually took a single glance at the report and set it back in the file before pressing him with questions that could never show up on a public record. No, he was writing this for Lieutenant Bennett and Sergeant Wahlen, and all of the other ODSTs who died on that planet what was now serving as their final resting place. Wiping his eyes to try and alleviate the pain for a few seconds, he continued his slow but steady typing despite his blurry vision. But after a few more minutes of writing he pushed his chair back and paced around his quarters in just his boxer briefs to get the blood flowing again and to let his eyes get a break from focusing on the monitor. For a brief moment he left his mind indulge it's more mischievous side and he thought about waking Katana up and bringing her over here but it would've been more than awkward. The three of them were sharing the same room and even the smallest change in the EMF would tip them off and they'd all be awake, and even if they didn't wake up to his psychic presence they were trained to be some of the most efficient and perceptive killers and the noise would wake the other two up. He ignored the slight change in the way his boxers fit and returned his thoughts to the report.

"_Soldier…the report isn't due until we arrive at Earth and Captain Ambresio has already made it clear that we are taking nearly three day's worth of random jumps until we begin to move back towards Earth. There's no need to be stressed over this_," Nathan said quietly.

"I know, but I want to write it all down while it's still fresh," he replied with the lame excuse. The death of Bennett had shaken him a little more than he was expecting and Nathan had already commented on his increasingly fitful sleep and brain waves that were becoming quite erratic when he was dreaming. After the incident in The Hive, Luke had taken it upon himself to try and prevent the same situation from happening again by limiting how long he slept so that he could try and avoid prolonged REM cycles. For the most part it had worked but there were a number of times where he would wake up with the same telekinetic field affecting his bed and anything near it, although he was lucky none of these remotely approached the intensity of the first incident. He had debated going to Dr. Allara with this information but he decided against it and kept it all to himself. Satisfied that he'd given his eyes and mind enough of a rest, he sat back down at the computer and was able to finish off a few more paragraphs describing their encounter with the Prophet of Regret in the Forerunner facility and the battle that ensued on the surface, culminating in their extraction. He stared at the screen for a few moments while he debated whether to recommend medals for Bennett and Wahlen but he realized that he'd have to do the same for Meyers and Mueller who also went above and beyond the call of duty, and even then, the other ODSTs he fought with all showed incredible courage considering the circumstances and it would be unfair. The words came out easily once the debate had been fought in his mind and he suggested that the entire Platoon receive a commendation, with special mentions for Bennett and his NCOs. Luke thought it was a fair compromise although it was likely that with the classified nature of the mission they wouldn't get anything aside from some kind words from their superior before being sent back into the field. They probably wouldn't want anything else, Luke thought as he saved the document where it would stay until they arrived back at Earth. Turning the projector off, his room suddenly went dark but with the enhancements to his eyes it was still easy to see everything as if it was all emanating a faint gray light and he found his bed easily and lay down.

"_Would you like an alarm?_" Nathan asked.

"No, it's ok," he replied, knowing he didn't have any assignments or pressing needs the next day. Lying on his back his hands behind his head, Luke stared up at the ceiling for a few moments to try and let his mind wind down a little and fall asleep but it was difficult; something was nagging at him and he couldn't figure it out. The image of the Prophet of Regret continued to invade his mind and the ideas that were the source of the unrest in his head became clearer and he got up slowly, almost afraid that any quick movements would shatter what was being formed in his mind.

"_Something the matter_?" The AI inquired, obviously picking up his movement on the motion sensors in the room.

"No…actually it's something really good. I don't know why I didn't see it before now," he replied as he got out of bed and pulled his camo pants on and grabbing the black shirt that was hanging over his chair. "Message the Captain and see if he's awake and if he is please tell him that I have something important I need to speak with him about." A few moments passed as Luke put his boots on and cinched his belt tight.

"_He's awaiting your arrival_," Nathan finally said. Luke hurried out through the darkened hallways towards the Captain's quarters. Located near the bridge, he pressed the call button next to the keypad and waited for Ambresio to let him in. The door opened silently and Luke took a few steps into his quarters. It wasn't much larger than Luke's, his bed and some storage units off the left separated from the rest of the room by a bulkhead. In front of him was a small living area that was sparsely furnished aside from the built in "L" shaped couch to the right of Luke that looked like it had never been used before. The Captain was sitting behind his desk directly in front of a Luke where a single lamp extended up from the side and bathed the room in a soft golden light that cast hard shadows on everything around him.

"Thank you for seeing me on such short notice, sir," Luke said after saluting and being waved off.

"It's fine, I wasn't busy or anything," he replied back, leaning back in his chair and pulling off a pair of thin silver reading glasses. He was dressed in a pressed gray Oxford with just a nametag on his left breast and his rank insignia on either side of his lapel, a uniform that Luke had never seen him in before but he quickly assumed it was for more casual situations where a full dress up wasn't required. Ambresio set aside the tablet that he had been hunched over and motioned for Luke to come closer and take a seat but he declined the seat and remained standing between the two comfortable looking chairs opposite of his desk. "So what can I do for you? Nathan made it sound like it was something urgent."

"Well, sir, it may be." Luke took a breath before he continued. "I think I may have figured out a way to end this war, or at least bring the Covenant to the table." Ambresio's eyebrows arched up slowly but not in a condescending way that signaled he had already dismissed the idea.

"How did you come to this conclusion?"

"When we were in the facility, I encountered a race that I'd never seen before. This…Prophet…was flanked by an enormous Honor Guard and they fought to the death to keep me from him and I would be willing to bet everything that that Assault Carrier was his ship. If my hunch is correct, if we can get a hold of him the Covenant will probably be a lot more receptive to peace talks." The Captain rubbed his hand against his lips and didn't say anything for a few seconds.

"Well the debriefings we've had so far certainly suggest that this guy is an important player within the Covenant but I haven't had time to look over any of the footage from the fight and most of the combat reports are still being drawn up. I suppose you want me to push this idea up the chain of command?"

"If you would, sir. And if it's not overstepping my bounds I'd like to volunteer my team for this mission; we've had firsthand experience with a Prophet and his retinue which will be invaluable later on." Again Ambresio kept his mouth closed before speaking, seemingly running through an internal debate before making any promises to Luke.

"I'll pass the report along to ONI as well as trying to set up a more formal meeting with the people who will actually be giving the go ahead for something like this. I can't promise anything though. With the kinds of licks we've been taking the past few months the top brass has been pretty reluctant to make any drastic moves that may put us into an even weaker position. And I can tell you right now that, as solid as this idea is, they may be reluctant at first to give something like this the go ahead."

"Thank you sir. As long as the word is passed along I'll be happy." He nodded in return and picked up his glasses, indicating the conversation was over. Luke gave a quick salute and headed back towards his quarters. As he punched in his pass code into the pad, he recognized a familiar feeling inside his room. "Hey there," he said as he opened the door up. Katana was sitting on the edge of his bed in a pair of short-shorts and a tight fitting white tank top, her hands gripping the edge of the bad below the mattress.

"You're no fun," she said, getting up and walking over to him. She wrapped her arms around his neck and he picked her up as she locked her legs around his waist. Pushing her onto the bed they began to kiss and he couldn't resist running his hands up underneath her shirt while she let his pants loose and left him in his underwear. She giggled a little as he pulled her shirt off and a few minutes later they were entangled under the sheets.

* * *

"I think I can speak for everyone on this panel in saying that we've all looked over your report and have at least a basic understanding of what happened on the surface of Loki, and in particular the incident revolving around the Covenant forces within the research facility. But if you will Lieutenant, can you please give us a better idea of what you're specifically proposing."

"Yes sir," Luke said as he stood before three ONI officials all seated behind a glass desk in a room deep within The Hive. All of them were in their mid-forties, early fifties and showed signs of aging by the wrinkles on their face and the salt and pepper streaks that cut through their hair. Luke was in his dress uniform that Katana had insisted on pressing herself when she heard that they were going to have a meeting with him. The speed that Captain Ambresio had moved to get the meeting set was impressive and Luke was grateful for it. "My team and Sergeant Mueller's squad encountered a large contingent of Brutes while we were inside the facility. During our fight with them, a new group arrived that consisted of Elites wearing what appeared to be a ceremonial armor. Following them was the Brute commander who went by the name of Tartarus and seemed to hold a high ranking position within either the Brute culture or the Covenant as a whole. Finally, a Covenant leader arrived who held the title or name of Prophet of Regret. These two individuals seemed to command an extraordinary amount of respect and obedience that I've never seen before on the battlefield."

"And how did you come across these names?" the man on the left side of the table asked, the youngest looking one with only a few gray hairs poking through his short black hair although the scars or wrinkles on his face made him seem older than he may have been.

"A combination of hearing them firsthand and knowledge gained by my AI, Nathan." The man nodded, satisfied with the answer. "Just from my personal observations this was a high value target. I attempted to make a move on him but we were severely outmanned and outgunned and the mission would've been at jeopardy if we attempted to chase after him."

"Understood Lieutenant, no one is judging the decisions you made while you were on the ground. Your testimony seems to back-up the assumptions that our own analysts have come up with. This new species, currently given the codename of Prophet, seems to have a hold a high ranking position within the Covenant hierarchy and serves as either a religious or political leader. Do you agree with this, Lieutenant?" the man in the middle asked, leaning forward towards Luke across the table.

"I do, sir," Luke replied.

"So…since we're all on the same page with this, what is it that you're suggesting?" Luke took a moment to clear his throat and choose his words carefully before he spoke.

"Sir, I propose that my team and I infiltrate Covenant space and attempt to capture or assassinate one of the Prophets. I believe that in completing this mission we can hopefully bring the Covenant to the bargaining table and end this war." All of them raised their eyebrows at almost the exact same time and Luke felt a moment of defeat but didn't let it show and he remained as still as a statue. The silence continued and Luke knew that he needed to throw out the rest of the details before they already shut the idea down in their heads. "With the _Kamiak_, we would be able to slip into Covenant controlled space and begin to hunt for the Prophet. My AI has already created a preliminary list of code words that can be associated with him, such as the name of his ship and some of the titles that were used to describe him. By monitoring the Covenant BattleNet we should be able to mine information until we get a hit. Once we've located him, my team and I can insert and attempt to capture the Prophet. We've already gained considerable experience fighting with the Covenant and our armor is especially suited for covert insertions."

"You seem to have thought this plan out, Lieutenant. It also seems to be something quite personal to you," the man in the middle said, a habit that Luke was beginning to catch on to. It was becoming increasingly obvious that he was the one who he'd have to convince. His comment about the issue becoming personal caught Luke off guard a little bit, though. He had initially seen this as a mission that would benefit Humanity and the UNSC as a whole and was more interested in getting it pitched and given to someone else than keeping it close to his chest and it remaining on the table. But as time had passed and it was allowed to simmer in his head while they waited, he'd taken a much more personal stake in it.

"Sir, it has become a personal mission for me. I've seen enough death by the hands of the Covenant to make me want to get revenge on every one of them. But I also want this war to end with us, Humanity, still standing proud and if that means someone else has to complete the mission then so be it." He nodded at the end knowing that he had explained his opinion as best as he could. The man in the middle turned the corners of his mouth down indicating he was thinking over what Luke had said made a few notes on a datapad that had been sitting idle next to him.

"Considering the fact that Captain Ambresio's vessel will most likely be involved in this operation, assuming it's approved, I'd like to speak with him first and get his opinion on the matter. But aside from that, Lieutenant, I feel that we've got enough information from you to begin discussing the hypotheticals and grand scheme of the plan," the man in the middle said, emoting with his hands. "Just know that since we're in such early stages of this plan that details will absolutely be changed from what you've suggested, although you will have considerable input assuming it all goes through."

"Yes sir, I understand," Luke said, trying to keep from smiling. The fact that they were willing to escalate this beyond this meeting was a good sign, he thought.

"We'll be in contact once a decision has been made. You're dismissed." Luke snapped off a sharp salute and left the room. Stepping through a small waiting room with a pretty secretary flashing him a cute smile that he couldn't help but return, Luke walked out into one of the hallways that cut through The Hive. Sitting on a chair near the door was Katana dressed in her workout clothes with a towel wrapped around her neck, her sweaty hair pulled back in a ponytail showing off her rosy cheeks.

"How did it go?" she asked, remaining sitting with her legs crossed and the shorts pulled up showing off her toned thighs.

"I think it went fine," he replied back, his head bouncing back and forth belying the uncertainty he had deep within him. "We'll see where it goes from here."

"That's good to hear. But hey…since we're on leave," she said, abruptly changing topics. "Do you want to get and get something to eat? Maybe go out and have a little fun afterwards?"


	37. Frustration

"Frustration"

Purple lights pulsed slowly and dimly at the base of the alien metal walls which exposed a grating underneath where illuminated wires and cables cut back and forth. There was a soft haze that hung in the air near the ground that reflected the dim light that came from the small lights. Silently, Luke took a step forward and kept his eyes focused on the pathway ahead of him, the two beams of light on either side of his helmet casting immensely bright spots of light onto the surface of the metal that looked both mirror smooth and brushed. He kept listening to his radio for signs from his other squad but all of their frequencies were catching heavy static and whenever they did activate the comm channel they were triangulated and hunted down within seconds. Nothing had gone to plan and he was on his own now deep within a CCS-class Cruiser trying to find the Prophet of Regret, months after the mission had been approved by ONI top brass who had decided that the expenditure was worth it if they could manage to capture the Covenant leader. With Nathan and the Twins working diligently to scrub the Covenant transmissions that were logged during encounters with the aliens they had gleamed more information about the illusive leaders. The Hierarchs, as they had come to be known, was a group of three Prophets who had full political and religious control of the Covenant legions. Unfortunately it seemed that they were reclusive and remained on a planet or a ship named High Charity, and judging by the language the captains were using, it was a veritable fortress with hundreds or even thousands of ships protecting it at all times. Without more concrete info it was hard to tell if the captains were blustering or the language translation wasn't converting the numbers correctly but either way a direct assault on High Charity was almost certainly out of the question for Luke. He knew that they needed to wait for one of the Prophets to leave the safety of the fortress and into the waiting arms of Luke's squad. The first part of the plan had worked beautifully but now things had completely fallen apart and he was pushing forward with the mission without the support of his team.

"_Local Covenant chatter is increasing. Be on the lookout, I think a patrol is moving through the area_." Nathan's voice showed almost no emotion but Luke was able to pick out a hint of tension.

"Thanks for the heads up," Luke hissed back as he edged up to the corner of the wall and looked down the path that branched off to this left, a large pair of doors ringed in white light waiting for him. He knew that he would need to take this door but he also had a feeling that the Covenant Nathan was detecting were waiting for him on the other side. With no cover anywhere he'd be gunned down in an instant before he could get back behind the corner but that would open him up to a flank on either side. With the other Tempests it'd be no issue, their covering fire easily capable of forcing the Covenant forces back long enough for one of them to get into position and allows the others to move up. Checking his map of the Covenant ship he saw that the hallway on the other side of the door was a long and narrow one, not unlike the other hallways that made up the enormous ship. There was one saving grace in the form of two small nooks about twenty feet past the door and a pillar that was in the middle of what looked like a junction between another hallway just past that. If he moved fast enough he might be able to duck into them and work his way up from there. Doing a check of his ammo to make sure it was all within easy reach and the few grenades he had left were right where they should be. He took a split second to ready himself before he ran towards the door. Because they automatically opened before you got close to them, there was no way for Luke to use his fiber optic wire to check the other side of the door for enemies and if he did sneak up on the door it would most likely leave him flat footed when it sensed him nearby. As much as he hated it, blindly rushing in seemed to be his best bet. When he was about ten feet away the lights pulsed and the two metal panels slid apart with a soft tone and a hum from the mechanisms controlling the doors. To the three Elites waiting on the other side he was just a shimmer in the air and they couldn't react fast enough to track his stealth armor but this didn't stop them from long and the air was suddenly filled with plasma bolts cutting through the air and the sound of whining Plasma Rifles. Safely in one of the nooks, Luke edged up to the corner with his back to the wall and popped out and fired burst after burst at the Elite closest to him, on the right side of the hallway. His shields flared and burst and he howled in pain from the rounds slamming into him and the blue-armored soldier dropped to the ground while his comrades zeroed in on the muzzle flashes and sent plasma spraying back at him. A few of the bolts splashed against his shields and they quickly dropped to half power and an alarm began to sound softly in his ear alerting him to the danger. Brushing off the pain, he turned back out, this time kneeling down, and let loose with another barrage of bullets that took down a second Elite. Checking the hallway as he came back in behind cover to make sure no one was sneaking up on him, he switched out magazines and got ready to come back at him when plasma began to impact his shields and the walls around him. He'd misread what the Elite was doing and now he was boxed into the corner as his shields dropped and the alarms were now screaming in his ear. Each bolt that hit him sent pain all over his body and he twitched and jerked backwards against the wall until he was up against it and still the fire continued until all of the sudden it stopped. Luke looked at the Plasma Rifle and saw it's various vents open and clouds of hot gasses poured out while it tried to cool itself down. Taking this chance, he took step after step while firing his BR55 at the Elite who was now in the position that Luke had just been in. With his back against the wall, the Elite tried in vain to return fire but the bolts splashed off Luke's shields which were recharging and froze at about two-thirds. Finally a bullet found the Elite's head and it fell to the ground in a slump. Standing in the middle of the hallway, Luke was clenching and unclenching his teeth to take his mind of the pain that was wracking his body from each of the bolts of Plasma that had hit him. Looking down to check his gear to make sure it wasn't damaged, he was stunned as an Energy Sword materialized through his gut and was sticking out into the air from his stomach. The pain was almost unbearable and he fell forward and then landed onto his side, looking back up at his killer. A SpecOps Elite was materializing out of thin air and standing over him triumphantly, his mandibles clicking back and forth. Almost triumphantly he lifted his sword up into the air and brought it down into Luke's chest and for a split second he was overcome with a blinding pain before everything went black.

"_Simulation has terminated_," a computerized female voice said over hidden speakers. The pain that had just consumed Luke's body went away and his visor turned back on again, giving him a view of the Covenant halls as they melted away like smoke falling to the ground and revealing barren metal walls and embedded fluorescent lights on the ceiling. He rolled onto his back and the Elite that had been standing over him just a few moments ago was replaced with a small floating drone that silently flew off down the hallway.

"_Same problems as last time_?" Nathan asked while Luke sat up but remained sitting on the floor.

"Yeah," he replied back, a little annoyed at the situation. "They don't show up on motion tracker, I can't hear them or sense them. It's like we're fighting ghosts in here." He shifted his armor a little, the special suit he wore underneath his normal layers to deliver the jolts of pain moving uncomfortably against his skin. Hopping back up to his feet, Luke made his way through the hallways that had just belong to a Covenant cruiser but were in fact just modular walls that could be rearranged as needed in only a few minutes. Arriving at the exit, the rest of his squad met him there and just by glancing at their body language he could tell that they were just as annoyed as he was at the whole situation. They had purposefully been separated early on in the mission to operate by themselves at the same time but nothing was similar to what they would experience in the real mission and each one had been killed by something that had snuck up behind them. He knew that they were trained to overcome any obstacle they encountered, but he couldn't shake the feeling that this was all a waste of time. Walking through the door and down a long hallway, they were back in the briefing room where a young officer was waiting for them with his arms folded against his chest and he waved them out when he saw them come in, his face scrunching up giving away the questions he asked immediately.

"What happened?" Luke had been frustrated with ONI's iron-fisted oversight and this man was the symbol of it all. Months earlier they had approved his request to lead this mission but instead of allowing Luke to coordinate with The Twins and Captain Ambresio, layer after layer of military politics was tossed on as each group wanted to their name attached to the mission. Instead of roaming the open space and spying on the Covenant until they had enough information to home in on one of the Prophets, the different facets of the operation were all demanding enormous and unreasonable amounts of intel before approving the _Kamiak_ to be deployed to check out an area before immediately running back to Earth. And to pass the time, they'd been forced to continually do these training missions that did nothing for them. The entire mission had gotten so far off track that he had an ever growing feeling that it was all just stalling tactics and that his team was no longer the chosen group for this mission. In the end, he was so beyond caring that he just wanted to shut it all back down and just get back out into the field and actually _do _something.

"Same as always. Nothing's changed," he replied back tersely, removing his helmet and setting it down on one of the tables in the room.

"Brass is getting a little uneasy with all of this. I've tried to convey your concerns about the exercises but they just keep seeing that you haven't been able to successfully finish one and they're beginning to wonder if it'd be worth the risk."

"Then let me talk to them," Luke shot back.

"Oh, well, this is all through emails and memos. They're too busy right now to hold full meetings," the officer stammered quickly, backpedaling as fast as he could. Luke just shook his head before letting it drop a little, giving a quick laugh out of frustration.

* * *

Luke's fist smashed into the metal walls of his room, a loud crack as his skin contacted. He winced in pain from the shock that shot up from his arm and he grunted loudly while he pulled his hand back and examined the small speckles of blood still staining the walls and the small trickle that was make it's way from his knuckles in between his fingers. Allowing himself that one outburst he held his throbbing hand in his palm and paced around the room. He was still seething from the entire debacle but with his momentary outburst it was subsiding and the rational part of his brain was regaining control. Luke decided that he wanted to speak with the Captain and get his thoughts on the matter since they were the ones who first debated the issue months earlier.

"Nathan, can you get me in touch with the Captain?"

"The _Captain is out of The Hive at the moment, but he left a message specifically for you. He's at a restaurant if you'd like to meet with him_." Luke snorted a little but Ambresio had gotten good at knowing how Luke would react to a situation and this time he had read him perfectly.

"Just tell me where to go," he replied back.

"_Karl's Bar and Grill, nothing fancy, but I would suggest you dress warm because it's gotten quite nasty up there_." Reaching into his closet, he pulled out a nice pair of jeans and a tight fitting black sweater and put them on then grabbed a three-quarters length pea coat out and an umbrella, neither of which had been used yet. Taking a step and then taking it back, he grabbed a pair of nice leather gloves and left his quarters. Sure enough, the weather had turned nasty and he was glad that he had dressed up. Exiting The Hive through one of the many nondescript buildings on the High Command complex, Luke walked out into a sleet mix and near freezing temperatures that would only get lower as the night turned to morning. Popping the umbrella, he was content to listen to the constant pitter-patter of rain and slush bouncing off the nylon material before it slid off the sides like a wall around him. His exposed cheeks were tender from the biting cold and wind and turned his cheek bones a bright red while the color drained from the rest of his face. Avoiding the puddles on the perfectly built streets and the ice that was forming on parts of the sidewalk he finally arrived at the pub near the waterfront. Stepping inside the dimly lit restaurant he looked up and down the bar to his left where soldiers in and out of uniform were grouped together talking to each other while a band played quietly up on a stage to the back right. The open space in between was obviously used as some sort of dance floor or for extra dining space but right now it was used as just another area for mingling. Glancing upstairs he saw a number of rustic tables arranged in a wrap around floor space that overlooked the open area in the center, and as he was scanning the faces he saw the Captain motion subtly to him.

"Glad you came by, I was getting a little bored," Ambresio said as Luke got settled. A waiter came by to check on him but he waved her off with a smile but not before relenting to a glass of water. Ambresio took a big bite out of an enormous and messy burger. "A few weeks of shore leave always makes the months away worth it."

"Yeah," Luke agreed, suddenly feeling an urge to join him in eating one of those burgers.

"I'll cut to the chase though, we're not here for idle chit-chat." Setting his meal down, he wiped his mouth and took a long drink of a clear soda and leaned back in his seat. "You're right to be frustrated about this entire thing. It should've been a pretty simple operation but military politics have gotten involved and it's not something you're experienced enough to work your way through. I've spoken to a few friends in different places and what I'm hearing is that the Spartans have been handed the mission and they've taken an old cruiser to work their way into Covenant space. They're going with a much more brute force approach, multiple teams with a full Longsword complement, a far cry from ours."

"I wish I could say I was surprised but…" Luke said, trailing off as he shrugged his shoulders.

"Don't expect your team to be assigned the mission, the Spartans and the _Pillar of Autumn_ will travel to Reach to get refueled and geared up before they depart for Covenant space. But…that doesn't mean you and your team can't continue the hunt. I've filed a request to have the _Kamiak_ deployed to some of the fringe colonies to hover until we can get an idea about where we can begin the search." Luke listened quietly and patiently, letting Ambresio do the talking. "It's the best we can do considering the circumstances."

"I understand sir, thank you. I'll get my team-," Luke stopped when Ambresio's PDA caught his attention and he pulled it out of his pocket. His face changed subtly and the lines on his face got thicker as his eyes darted back and forth across the screen which was obviously distressing him. "Sir?"

"Ballast has been attacked by a small Covenant picket. The defense grid repelled them before they were able to do significant damage but it's not the Covenant modus operandi to just leave one of our planets alone. Not to mention this is the third attack on an Inner Colony in a month."

"They're getting closer," he replied, referring to the Covenant's push towards Earth and her home planets. Ambresio grunted in agreement and swiped his military ID on a small sensor next to the table and grabbed his coat. Luke followed this cue and did the same.

"We're going to go and help out there. We need to make a stand somewhere and start putting a halt to their war machine." A smile crept across Luke's face as they hurried down the stairs. He spotted a few other people check their computers or phones and give looks of frustration or sadness and it could be assumed that they were all getting the same notification that their ships were being sent to defend the planet. Luke was just happy that he could take the hurt to the Covenant.

**Author's Note: Huge apologies for the delay. This chapter was supposed to be out the middle of last week but a nasty combination of writer's block and a bout of migraines/dizziness prevented me from making much progress till tonight. On top of that I got a little sidetracked getting ideas for a completely different story down on paper to come back to in a few months. I should be back on a more normal update schedule (schedule, me? Hahaha) for the foreseeable future.**


	38. Ballast

"Ballast"

"_This should be fun_," Nathan said sarcastically as Luke stood rigid in the bridge of the _Kamiak_ with the rest of his team waiting back near the door so that he was standing alone near Ambresio. When they had arrived in system the commanders had decided that a ground operation wasn't worth the losses that were sure to be incurred in what would most likely be a vain attempt to defend the planet. Instead, they had agreed that the UNSC forces would make a stand in space to repel the Covenant fleet but if it got out of control they would enact the Cole Protocol and abandon the planet to the Covenant. The planet only had a few major population centers and they were clearing out quickly but not all of them would be able to escape. That was just a risk that would have to be taken.

Since there would be no ground engagement, Luke had tried to get approval for his team to assault a Covenant ship but Ambresio quickly vetoed that and told them they would be assigned to guard duty like the rest of the Marines who were waiting to repel any Covenant forces that tried to get aboard. He didn't like it but there was really no other choice for his team which was how they found themselves on the bridge. Out in front of them were thirty UNSC ships of varying sizes. Most of them were _Heracles_-class Destroyers which lacked deployable fighters but made up for it with extra armor and weapons, while the remaining ships were the lighter _Pegasus_-class Frigates that the _Kamiak_ had been modified from. Sitting in the center of the mass of vessels was a single _Marathon_-class Cruiser, the UNSC _Paladin_. Despite their incredible armor and firepower, the _Marathons_ were still outmatched by the Covenant CCS although they could destroy a CPV-class Frigate in a one-on-one fight without suffering too much damage. Rounding out Ballast's defense grid was a number of orbital weapons platforms and some repair stations, the tactic of using the enormous constructs as a shield from the initial volley of Covenant fire had proven to be an effective tactic and they were going to use it again. It might buy them enough time to use the devastating MAC and Super MAC cannons that were one of the only weapons truly capable of crippling a Covenant ship.

With butterflies in his stomach, Luke couldn't help but feel a little more jittery and nervous that usual. He wasn't alone though. From the moment he walked into the bridge the tension had assaulted his mind incessantly although it was perfectly normal for everyone to be stressed. It almost felt worse considering he couldn't do anything if they got in a ship-to-ship engagement but watch and pray. They had been hearing whispers of Covenant ships in the area for the past hour but nothing had materialized and Luke was getting the feeling the Covenant were toying with them. Most of their damage was caused in the initial surprise attack, before the UNSC forces could regroup and retaliate. Without that they would be facing a coordinated and cunning enemy, an enemy that was desperate and dangerous. By throwing up false flags they would be too acclimated to react quickly to counter the first salvos.

"Make sure all of the mines are warmed up and prepped for launch," Ambresio said to his weapons officer who had already triple checked the systems and knew that all of them were 100%.

"Aye sir," he replied back and went through the motions, already knowing the answer.

"We've got another ping. Looks like three ships this time," a young woman said on the other side of the bridge from the weapons officer. She had her face buried in scanners and other monitors when she almost jumped back in her seat. "Actually…I think the fleet has arrived." What was once three small dots on the screen had become a mass of twenty or so Covenant ships all jumping into system at once. Peering out through the front windows Luke could see the bright white pinpricks of light that expanded into stable rings shining as the very fabric of space was torn open. A moment later the enormous purple vessels slide through the opening and the Slipspace portal closed behind them. In a matter of seconds the entire Covenant fleet had appeared and were already preparing to fire their weapons. The repair stations fired all of their adjustor rockets and slid in front of the UNSC forces as beams of plasma lanced through space and torpedoes streaked away from the Covenant ships. Plasma slammed into the enormous stations and fire erupted along their hulls as the oxygen went up in flames, debris spewing out in all directions. The three of them held against the first volley and by this time the lead Destroyers were beginning to close the distance while some of the smaller Covenant CPVs jumped out in front of the CCS class ships and began to engage the Destroyers in the no-mans land between the two forces. Golden flashes of light clashed with the purple and blue pops of the Covenant weapons, explosions appearing around the ships and in between each other.

"Full ahead, right for those big ships!" Ambresio ordered, pointing to the cluster of CCS Cruisers that hadn't advanced forward. The engines went to full power and the Kamiak jumped forward towards the Covenant, quickly moving past the Destroyers engaged in the center. Amazingly the captains had kept their ships alive as they danced in between the Covenant Frigates before they broke off and began to run back towards the main fleet. The Covenant continued the pursuit but were caught in the trap that had been laid. All along the lines of the weapons platforms, the smaller guns began to fire their enormous rounds and the missile pods came to life.

"Sir, flak field is up!" one of the officers reported. Just as the Destroyers fell in behind the repair stations the entire area began to fill with orange explosions as the Frigates got caught in the field of fire. Missiles struck their weakened shields that were flickering silver before they shut down and the flak began to pockmark their hulls and the missiles opened up the purple shell, exposing the innards of the ships. Five of them were caught in the trap and the nearby ships let loose with everything they had at their disposal. Two of them eventually succumbed to the onslaught while the other three pushed through the carnage but were still facing overwhelming odds. A sudden flash of light caught Luke's attention and he watched one of the ships consumed from explosions blossoming out of it's superstructure before the reactor detonated and consumed the entire ship in a blinding white light before the remaining debris was jettisoned in every direction. Another flash of light and he saw that one of the Super MACs was firing and a second Frigate was crippled while the Tungsten round tore through it with easy, traveling at almost 40% of the speed of light. The port sections of the ship exploded away and the remaining corpse of the ship floated away harmlessly. The remaining ship was swarmed by the smaller UNSC crafts who must've hit a vital spot when suddenly all of it's lights flickered and died along with the engines.

Still traveling towards the Covenant fleet, the _Kamiak_ made a last minute change and began to travel horizontal to their main line while it deployed HORNET anti-ship mines. The nuclear mines would position themselves to get closer to any nearby Covenant vessel before detonating on their shields, severely damaging it, if not outright destroying the ship if they were lucky. Their size was a problem, though, and the _Kamiak_ was only able to deploy twenty in a long line before the launchers were empty.

"Mines away sir." Ambresio remained silent as the Kamiak flew away from the Covenant fleet, positioning themselves on the far side of the battlefield. Still not used to space battles, Luke was thoroughly surprised that the _Kamiak_ was able to slip by unnoticed like it just did. It was back to waiting though as the fleets began to maneuver again. The Covenant CPVs began to push forward while the four CCS class cruisers remained behind but were slowly nudging forward.

"They're waiting for the _Paladin_ to make her move," Ambresio said, glancing between the two groups. "Either these captains are very new or they're very smart. Not sure which it is, yet." Luke wasn't sure if it made a difference though considering the firepower they had at their disposal. If they threw everything they had at the UNSC fleet they would probably still be able to win.

Leading the UNSC ships forward were the remains of the repair stations that were miraculously still in one piece. Atmosphere was venting from thousands of holes and leaks in the hull and debris was constantly falling; off but it prevented the Covenant ships from getting a bead on most of the UNSC fleet. The flak field let up from the defense platforms and the UNSC fleet had reached the halfway point and they opened fire on the Covenant ships. Long trails streaked away from the Destroyers from their missile pods and small orange explosions rippled across the shields of nearby Covenant ships but they held as another salvo was launched. Point defense lasers popped through the air and intercepted the missiles but enough made it through to take down a few shields from the Covenant ships. Other ships jumped on the opportunity and a bright flash of light erupted from their bows when their MAC cannons launched the enormous Tungsten slugs through the Covenant Frigates, disabling another ship. The Covenant's fire finally took out the repair stations but instead of blowing up in a grand display of fireworks they simply broke apart into a million pieces and began to create an enormous debris field that was already being filled with pieces of ships. The incredible success of the UNSC fleet was beginning to turn, though. Luke watched three Destroyers fall to the Covenant as their plasma torpedoes cut through their armor and detonated inside of the ships. Explosions blossomed out from the Titanium-A plating as it buckled and warped before shattering in a mixture of flames and plasma. A second torpedo hit the same area and the front half of the Destroyer broke off and tumbled away, the last of it's atmosphere sprayed out into space behind it. One of the other Destroyers took a direct hit to it's magazine and was instantly consumed in an explosions that shredded all but the bridge and sent chunks of it hurtling off into space.

"_This is Admiral Yamata of the _UNSCPaladin_. Deploy all fighters and coordinate with my ship's AI_." The Captain's voice echoed through the bridge of the _Kamiak_. Luke looked over towards the large ship and saw that it had begun to maneuver into position, it's forward facing guns firing at full speed leaving a long golden trail of tracers. The larger guns chugged as it fired each round and he could just barely watch the white hot shells slamming into the shields of a CCS class which was quickly followed up by one of the most terrifying salvos of Archer missiles Luke had ever seen. Beginning near the bow, the pods fired in order along the hull towards the bow and encased the entire ship in their exhaust trail as thousands of the missiles raced towards the CCS. Point defense lasers frantically began shooting at them which left a trail of explosions in space but hundreds still impacted the shield and it began to flicker but it held. Nearby ships moved to help but it wasn't needed when there was a sudden blinding flash of light and a shockwave of energy when a HORNET detonated on the nose of the CCS and engulfed the entire ship in the nuclear explosion when the enormous craft moved too close to it. Another flash off in the distance and a CPV was completely engulfed and disappeared when the explosion subsided, it's debris flying away. Their attention was focused back on the CCS who's nose had been obliterated and the rest of the ship had taken serious damage, leaving it dead in the water and easy pickings. A number of MAC rounds cut through it and the ship exploded in a brilliant light show. Luke was doing a mental count in his head to figure out as best he could how many ships had been taken out on either side and it looked like the UNSC was still coming out on top despite having lost a few more Destroyers and Frigates. Shifting slightly, he wasn't sure what to do other than continue standing there.

"Oh my god!" Alarms began to scream in the bridge and red lights pulsed quickly, jolting Luke from the lethargy that he was about to slip into.

"_Alert! Proximity warning! Alert! Proximity warning!_"

"Slipspace rupture right behind us and it's something big!" the woman in the scanner seat called out.

"Shut those alarms off!" Ambresio ordered and the bridge went back to normal. He began to project a small hologram at his chair that showed the radar that she was seeing. Another Covenant fleet had jumped in system behind them and was moving quickly into the fray. Already on either side he could see CCS-class Cruisers slinking past in the darkness, their purple hulls illuminated by the golden sunlight.

"We have a CKM-class Assault Carrier bearing down right on us and CCS Cruisers flanking her on either side. Suggest we get out of here ASAP," she reported but the Captain remained silent.

"Disarm the mines and move us out of the crossfire." He tapped a few coordinates in and the _Kamiak'_s navigators began to maneuver her in that direction.

"Sir, all signals are being jammed. The Covenant must have a stealth ship in the area," the weapons officer reported. "If we get close to them we can give them a shortwave burst but it'll light us up like a spotlight on Covenant sensors."

"Do it, this is going to get up close and personal in a few seconds and we can't have those nukes detonating near our ships. Take us to the nearest mine." Ballast had slid into their view as the _Kamiak_ maneuvered out of the battlefield but now the planet began to disappear again as they turned back towards the battle that was getting more hectic as it drug on. The two groups had shifted their focus and they could see all of the Longsword fighters turning towards the new fleet to engage the swarm of Seraphs was making it's way towards he main engagement. Explosions began to flash orange and blue as they took each other out, a few Longswords straying too close to the Assault Carrier which promptly destroyed them with their point defense weapons. Once the _Kamiak_ had settled on it's final bearing Luke got a sinking feeling in his stomach. Just watching the way the battle was panning out he could see that they were going to be flying right into the center of the engagement if it continued to shift like it was. Slowly moving from their starboard as the Covenant ships tried to regroup with their larger brethren, the UNSC ships were forced to follow them through the mine field that they had set up, two more mines detonating in the middle of it all. Luke winced when he saw this and he could only imagine what Ambresio was feeling. They had planned on trying to bring the Covenant forces back towards them, pulling them through the minefield, but now that the second group had arrived they were being forced to fight through them and only some of the platforms were in range. The ones closest had actually begun to fire their heavy guns and their flak cannons as a new field of engagement erupted near the Seraphs and the Longswords tried to pull them near it but the Covenant fighters wouldn't budge and they continued to fight on the edge of the flak. Keeping his eye on the enormous Assault Carrier, he could see it's main energy projector almost "sniping" ships as it warmed up on it's underside before cutting through the air and destroying a ship in a single hit. Thankfully it seemed like it took a while for the weapon to charge and cool off but it was still devastating to watch their ships obliterated in a single hit. He could also see the effects the Covenant stealth ship was having when Archer missiles would fly straight and then suddenly start darting off in odd directions or just explode for no reason. The missile wasn't the best tool in the UNSC's arsenal but to have it almost completely nullified was a serious blow to their chances.

"You won't believe this…one of our battlegroups has jumped in-system, Battlegroup Eon."

"I won't believe it but it's good news. What are they bringing to the party?" Ambresio replied, his voice still tense although Luke could see that his body language had softened up a little bit.

"Twenty-three Destroyers, two Marathons, and a Carrier, the _Eon_." It was a formidable force and Ambresio had a feeling they hadn't been sent here to reinforce them, they'd just gotten damn lucky. Almost obscured by the small view port, Luke could see the tell-tale signs of Slipspace ruptures as the remainder of the Battlegroup Eon arrived. Already the Marathons had jumped out ahead of the fleet while the _Eon_ moved in closer to deploy it's fighters. Still diving into the maelstrom, they were beginning to see the Longsword and Shortswords dance around them, their own cannons auto-targeting the Seraphs and firing quick bursts at the quick moving ships. The _Kamiak_ seemed to be moving much faster than usual and he figured it was because this was the most dangerous part while they cut in front of the competing fleets. Already missiles and MAC shots were being fired off while plasma came burning past them, completely destroying a Frigate just ahead of them. Luke looked for escape pods as explosions rippled across the hull but it had all happened so fast he doubt anyone knew what hit them outside of the command crew. Enormous shells from the heavy guns the Marathons had on them hissed past and slammed into the shields of the Assault Carrier which easily shrugged them off and continued to cut through the UNSC forces.

"Arriving at the first mine," the weapons officer said and the _Kamiak_ quickly came to a stop as it came in close to the mine that was still floating where they had left it. A few moments passed and then the high powered burst reached the mine and it disarmed itself.

"Covenant weapons are targeting us!"

"Ahead full then cut back on my mark!" Ambresio replied and Luke grabbed onto a nearby railing as the g-forces piled on and the ship hurtled forward. Alarms began to blare again as the plasma torpedoes locked onto them and began to close in quickly. The Kamiak dove into the maelstrom and was engulfed in a hellish mixer of plasma, explosive rounds, and burning ships. Debris bounced off their hull, the largest pieces making distressing but harmless sounds as it echoed through the super structure. "Turn us hard!" Luke gritted his teeth as the ship swung starboard as hard as it could and dodged another Destroyer that was moving perpendicular to them. The maneuver was too quick and sharp for the torpedoes to track and they continued off into space without any target. Settled, they found themselves near the orbital platforms as they slinked out of combat. A quick rundown of the damage showed that it was mostly superficial. A few of their redundant sensor modules had been taken out and some of the armor had been breached by stray point defense guns but the hull had remained intact and their stealth hadn't been compromised. To say the _Kamiak_ had gotten lucky would've been an understatement.

By now the two groups had converged completely and the battle was raging. All three Marathon cruisers were sparkling from the guns all firing non-stop, the momentary flashes of their heavy guns catching Luke's attention and the small barrages of missiles being fired at Covenant ships with their shields down. Occasionally a MAC cannon would streak across their field of view but because of the close proximity of the battle and the hectic nature as ships danced around each other it was incredibly dangerous. If every ship had an AI they would be able to coordinate with each other but only the Marathons and the _Eon _had one and they were most likely devoted to controlling their own weapons systems. As Luke was scanning the battle he saw something that caught his attention when one of the long CCS cruisers flew past the Marathon-class UNSC _Hoplite_. It wasn't anywhere near the ship itself, but from his view he was able to see a slight refraction as it flew past.

"Sir.." he said, stepping forward. "I think there's something by the _Hoplite_. It might be that stealth ship."

"Why do you say that?"

"The ship was distorted when it moved across that plane, same as the stealth that Elites use," Luke replied. Ambresio didn't say anything and examined the area that Luke had pointed towards but without anything to show up the distortion they were blind.

"Alright…fire off a salvo in that corridor and let's see if anything pops up."

"Aye sir," the weapons officer replied and a second later one of the missile pods fired off twenty missiles and they streaked towards where they thought the ship was at. One way or another they'd figure out if Luke had seen something, either by hitting the ship or watching them fly off into space. Time passed slowly as they kept flying away from the Kamiak, a few being taken out along the way. He was a little let down when it looked like they had missed their target but then suddenly explosions filled the empty space and a piece of purple plating appeared in space almost on top of the _Hoplite_.

"There it is!" someone called out and the exposed part of the ship quickly moved away from the enormous Cruiser and it's stealth reactivated in the damaged areas and it melted into the darkness. As they raced back into the fight Luke could see something more important when he spotted squads of Elites crawling around the hull. They seemed to be ignoring the hatches and were instead looking for something.

"What are they doing?" Luke asked, moving closer to try and see the small shapes moving across the hull and were getting dangerously close to some of the hardlines that the ship used to connect between the bridge to the mainframe that was held in an armored compartment deep within the ship. In one fell swoop they would be able to disable the ship's main control systems and have complete access to the navigation database. "We need to get on there now and stop them!"

"It's not that easy getting you over there," Ambresio said. "With everything going around you can't just go floating over there."

"What if we use one of the escape pods? We can navigate it close and get out then." Luke took the silence from the Captain as a sign that he was going to approve it. He got the subtle nod and Luke quickly led his squad out of bridge toward a cluster of Bumblebee escape pods. The pods could be launched without a pilot and the auto-pilot would bring the pod to the nearest planet or UNSC ship, or it could be manually guided to wherever. Nathan would be able to pilot it without issue and put them right where the wanted to be. Ducking into life-pod he was shocked at how cramped it was and when he turned around he could see that there was only space for one other person. Claymore jumped in right behind him while Dagger and Katana hunched over in the airlock and looked in.

"What do you want us to do?" Luke took a second to look over the situation.

"Just stay here. If things get rough get over if you can but defend the ship if the Covenant try and board us too." The both sent him acknowledgements and stepped out as the airlock slammed shut. Looking out the front window through at the chute the lifepod sat it, he could see the _Hoplite_ come into view and then there was a sudden acceleration and the pod shot out of the chute. They traveled at full speed for a few seconds as the pod headed straight for the Cruiser before it fired it's retro-thrusters and slowed down. Nathan flipped the small craft over so that the rear door was facing the ship and they continued to get closer before it finally came to a stop only a few hundred feet away from the ship. Thrusters fired all over to keep the ship perfectly in line.

"_I'll explosively decompress the pod and you'll get pushed towards the _Hoplite," Nathan said matter-of-factly into Luke's ear. The Bumble settled even closer and he let go of everything inside the cabin. With his rifle attached to his back so that his hands were free, he squatted down behind Claymore who was waiting at the door. In his ear, Nathan counted down before he gave the call and the door blew off the back. He heard a rush of air for a split second until everything went silent and he was yanked out of the pod in space.


	39. August 30 2552

"August 30 2552"

A terrifying silence fell over Luke as he followed Claymore out the back of life pod towards the _Hoplite_. All that he could hear was his calm and focused breathing coupled with the air scrubber in his suit providing him with oxygen from the C02 he exhaled. For a split second he was hit with incredible nausea from the contents of his stomach beginning to bounce around but he was able to get control of and he focused on the nearing hull of the Cruiser. Already there was incoming plasma fire from the Elite Rangers who wore a full space suit equipped with a thruster back pack to make moving about easier. Most of the fire was errant and unfocused, probably due to the range and Luke was able to ignore it and focus on his landing. He shifted his weight so that he wasn't directly beyond Claymore and positioned himself so that it looked like he was crawling in the air and held rigid but was ready to get limber if he was going to need to scramble if he missed it. As the dark gray metal got closer and closer he reached out with his magnetic grips and latched onto the hull without problem and remained in the crouched position as he looked over at Claymore who landed as well. It took a moment for him to get his bearings while he set up a new horizon with the hull of the ship and started to spot the Elites.

From a distance the hulls all looked smooth but in fact there were bumps and valleys all over from various auxiliary units that sat on top of the armor plating and other designs built into the superstructure. This made it difficult to spot someone for long when they disappeared behind one of this protrusions.

"Nathan, mark up some of the link up points for these hardlines, I want to know where they're headed. Alert them if they don't already know." Luke pulled his rifle off his back and stood up to make his way towards the first squad of Elites, four of them who were making quick time towards their location. Moving in zero-g was incredibly difficult and there was no way that you could make quick movements or easily get out of the way of danger which made Luke feel as if he was in molasses while he moved across the hull. In between the two groups was a gun battery that was firing rounds larger than artillery shells at a machine gun rate without an ounce of sound coming from the double barreled behemoth. A testament to the Marathon-class's destructive power was the fact that it's hull was lined with these guns and they weren't even the largest bore that it had. What was even more frightening was that these guns had little effect on the Covenant's shields. Ducking down from some more plasma fire, he raised his rifle and fired off a few rounds in return and he was a little shaken when there was no sound and the kickback felt almost non-existent. He couldn't help but notice as the three shell casings tumbled lazily away from the gun off into space. With the access points visible on his HUD and his IFF picking up the Covenant troops, Luke was able to get a better picture of what was going on and was able to start coming up with a plan. "Head south on the hull and get towards that cover over there while I head north. Keep the pressure on them and we'll take the bastards out."

"_Sounds good_," Claymore replied and he split away from Luke towards a box further down the hull. Luke continued to make his way towards the gun battery where the Elites had taken up positions. One of the Elites popped out on his jetpack and unleashed hell with two Plasma Rifles. He was able to avoid most of the fire but it was disheartening to see that the sub-zero temperatures of space were keeping their guns much cooler than normal which in turn led to more incoming fire. He cursed under his breath and fired back some more, hitting the Elite in the chest causing his shields to flare while he jumped back into cover. A small acknowledgement light popped up on his HUD and a moment later Claymore was firing with his SAW at the Elites. The four of them shifted their fire towards Claymore and that allowed Luke to push up towards them unmolested but they had taken refuge in some of the support structure of the gun and he couldn't get a bead on them. Pulling out a grenade he primed it and prayed his idea would work. Basically shotputting it, he sent it on a straight trajectory towards their hiding spot and got his rifle ready and put the bead of his scope on the spinning green device. When he thought it was close enough he fired off a few rounds at it and watched it explode. With no atmosphere to create a concussion wave he hoped the shrapnel would do the job as he took a hold of a lip on the armor and thrusted himself forward over the hull, careful to stay within arm's reach in case he needed to stop himself. Reaching one of the two pillars that made up the gun's axis and fed it ammo, he arrested himself and fired at the Elites who were still recharging their shields. Sticking to headshots, he took one of them down, blowing open their bug-eyed helmet as the Elite thrashed back and forth from his entire body trying to force itself out through the three holes in the helmet. Claymore caught another one as it tried to escape to the backside of the gun but the Elite wasn't fast enough and he took a long burst in the chest and felt the same pain as his blood literally sprayed out in globs around him. The remaining two Rangers remained hidden and Luke kept an eye on his motion tracker but there was nothing showing up.

"Do you see them?" he asked Claymore.

"_Uh, negative on that one boss_," he replied quickly and he saw his tag moving across the hull to get into a better position. Activating his stealth, he stepped into the area underneath the gun and moved slowly in the dark area keep his eyes peeled for the glowing orange eyes of the Rangers or the other lights on their weapons and armor. There were nooks and crannies all around him but none of them seemed small enough to provide cover for an Elite but he was proven wrong when all of the sudden there was a powerful blow against his head and he fell forward and lost his magnetic grip. He was still shaken from the hit but he quickly recovered by putting his hands out and latching on with the magnets and preventing him from flying off the hull. His legs were still coming over his head and so he basically did a handstand and landed back onto his feet near the other side of the turret and hopping behind cover.

"How the fuck did they see me?" he asked rhetorically, waiting for them to come around after him. Finally one of them popped out with Plasma Rifles blazing and he took a full barrage, instantly blow his shields off. Alarms were screaming in his ears and he ducked out of the stream of energy and began to pump burst after burst into the Elite. He made sure to stay mobile while the plasma continued to rake back and forth around him but he avoided it long enough for his shields to recover as he slapped a new magazine into his rifle. The Elite finally succumbed and floated off when a few more bursts tore open his armor and he died instantly.

"_Got him_," Claymore said, confusing Luke.

"What was that?"

"_Got one of the Elites_." Without sound he had no way of knowing that his teammate had engaged the other Elite.

"Copy that. Let's move onto the other squads, hopefully they haven't gotten to the access points yet."

"_They haven't_," Nathan injected. "_One team is still en route and the other has reached it but they're still trying to get through the armor to the hardlines. Once in they'll still have to deal with the firewalls that protect the various systems. This should provide us more time since evidence suggests the Covenant have very rudimentary AI algorithms and they seem to only be able to track our communications, not listen in on them_."

"That's good but I still don't want to bank on that. Drop a waypoint on the team that's closest to getting in." A triangle popped up on his HUD near a squad that was on the top of the ship which wasn't too far from their location. Claymore fell in around Luke and they began to hike up the side of the _Hoplite_ towards her spine. This gave Luke a moment to look around him and the view was terrifyingly beautiful. Golden tracers were filling space around and were mixing with the plasma torpedoes as they sailed through the air lazily, encapsulated in their magnetic fields. Longswords, Shortswords, and Seraphs were all fighting with each other as small wings of fighters chased after each other, dodging the ship-to-ship weapons that were constantly moving back and forth to track their targets. Remains of ships, mostly UNSC, were floating through space or getting hit from stray fire while they glowed orange from explosions and vented what atmosphere they still had inside of their hulls. A few lifepods were flying towards the nearest UNSC ships to be rescued. There was no longer a front line or a separation of forces as Covenant ships few directly into clusters of UNSC Destroyers and began to fire every single one of their weapons at close range, a few seconds later the UNSC ships would be engulfed in flames as their hulls were breached and their atmosphere vented while magazines detonated. Off in the distance a new nukes exploded on the shields of the Assault Carrier that was still devastating the UNSC fleet. As far as Luke could tell, the Cruisers and the _Eon, _which had turned so that it's side was facing the main battle so that it's main batteries could fire,were the only ships holding their own and that seemed to be because there had been no coordinated attack on them. But with fewer and fewer small ships to pick off that was likely to change. It was all very depressing as they traveled through the darkness on the port side of the _Hoplite_, the star back behind the planet again because of their position, finally reached the spine of the ship. The access point was in the middle of a depressed gap between two ledges, one connecting the engine housings to the rest of the ship while the other was near the swollen mid-section of the ship that housed most of the hangars and some of the bigger guns. Hanging over the area were two larger pylons of sorts that extended out from the engine compartment and towered over a smaller depression below them where the Elites had assembled. To the left of Luke and Claymore was a ramp of sorts that grew up till it plateaued just in front of them where it overlooked the gap. Staying near it, they made their way to ledge and looked down on the Elites. Three of them were standing guard away from two more who had out cutting tools and another crate near them that he guessed had whatever equipment they would need to get in and take control of the system.

"_I don't understand why they're doing all of this_," Claymore said as they looked on.

"The Cole Protocol is too effective for them. Right now they have to hope for a ship to not wipe it's database or for one of theirs to get lucky and jump right to us. So far we've been winning that little game and I think they're getting tired of it."

"_I concur_," Nathan said. "_This ship's database has been purged of all non-essential information and it's waiting on a final word on it's security before completing the Cole Protocol. Obviously the Covenant have gained at least a working knowledge of the Marathon-class and they're attempting to exploit this flaw_." Readying his rifle, he took aim on one of the Elites who was trying to cut into the armor when the entire hull began to flex and ripple. A shockwave rolled past them and he lost the grip on his rifle and he watched it float away from him, just out of reach.

"Shit!" he called out and looked back to see what had happened. Molten debris was spray out from an enormous hole in the ship near the bow and he could see atmosphere leaking out into space. A few secondary explosions threw more junk into space but the ship held and changed course as some Archer pods fired off. "What just happened?"

"_A direct hit from a Plasma Torpedo. Reports seem to suggest that it's largely superficial and it missed most of the vital superstructure components and all of the seals worked, however the MAC cannon does seem to be damaged although they're not sure to what extent_." Losing that weapon would be a severe blow to the ship's effectiveness and with more and more ships falling every second he was beginning to question the sanity of staying and fighting. He knew that wasn't a call that he was going to make and so he refocused on the Covenant. He pulled out his pistol and motioned for Claymore to give him his as well. With both of the guns and a few clips of ammunition for both he would be able to put out a lot of fire at once while Claymore would be able to use his SAW to keep them down. Their only chance, though, was that they hold the element of surprise and so they both activated their stealth and began to creep up on them. He made sure that everything was actually camouflaged before they got any closer. Both of them picked one of the guards and got close to them with their weapons ready, waiting on Luke's order to open fire which he gave only after a moment's hesitation. With both triggers pulled the two pistols shredded the Elite before he even knew what had happened to him and his limp body floated into the air while organs and blood came out of the bullet ridden corpse. Claymore's didn't last much longer and without the sound of their weapons it took a few seconds before the other Elites had realized what happened and their normally stern demeanor was replaced with a noticeably more panicked body language. The two who were cutting into the hull stopped what they were doing and tossed their tools to the ground and pulled out their Plasma Rifles. Scanning back and forth, one of them sprayed some fire in a vain attempt to hit one of them but he wasn't even close and Luke and Claymore took advantage of this to get closer to them. Replacing his clips which had been emptied in only a matter of seconds, he picked his new victim and took aim.

"I've got the one on the right," he radioed to Claymore.

"_Then the one of the left is mine_," he replied back, leaving the Elite in the middle for the both of them. Huddled only twenty or so feet from the Covenant forces, he counted to three in his head and gave the go command. Once again the two pistols came to life and demolished the Elite who he was aiming at, literally sawing him in half when he shredded his thin stomach area as the top half floated backwards and the legs remained standing straight up. With his remaining bullets he emptied his clips out into the center Elite who's shields remained intact and was now focused on Luke. He pressed the two pistols onto the hull where they stayed put and he rushed at the Elite with his combat knife out while Claymore's SAW peppered the other Elite with bullets before he finally succumbed to his wounds. He changed his fire to the third Elite and this drew his attention long enough for Luke to plunge his combat knife into the Elite's neck as blood began to spray out of the wound. It was a gruesome site watching the alien decompress and Luke pushed his body away from him into space, not wanting to watch it any longer. He turned back to the hole that they had cut and saw that most of the Titanium-A plating in the small area had been burned away and a thick black fiber optic line was visible at the bottom. He shook his head slightly at the serious design flaw.

"_Time to get the final group_?" Claymore asked.

"Yeah," he said, looking behind them and down the side of the hull where they were located. "Crap, you go ahead. I need to get my pistols."

"Hey…don't forget one of those is mine," he shot back with a laugh and Claymore began to move towards the edge of the hull while Luke hurried over towards the two guns that were still in place. As he reached down for them he was momentarily blinded when the sun erupted from the horizon of Ballast and bathed them all in a golden light. It took a moment for his suit to adjust to the sudden change in temperature and for his visor to polarize but when it did he couldn't help but be amazed at the beauty of the scene as the silhouettes of ships flew around in front of it, the enormous golden rays of light dancing around as the _Hoplite_ positioned itself. "Check this out, it's beautiful," Luke said as he turned to face Claymore. For a second he was confused by what he saw but it quickly registered as he stared at the enormous blue and white plasma torpedo streaking towards their position. Without a moment's hesitation he started running as fast as he could towards the ramp that they had originally been scouting from. "GET THE FUCK OUT OF THERE!" he screamed into his helmet and he saw Claymore scrambling back up the side of the ship and onto the flat top but he wasn't going to make it. A moment later the torpedo crashed into the engines of the Hoplite and all hell broke loose. Ionized Deuterium gas began to spray everywhere as the engines exploded and their vents collapsed, plasma tearing the entire area apart. Explosions blew out the rear compartments and Luke watched as the two pylons were dislodged and hurled through the air like two spears while Titanium plating went everywhere. He looked down at Claymore as explosions travelled the length of the ship towards his position.

"_Oh shit…oh shit…oh shit…"_ he kept saying in between quick breaths and Luke could tell that he was running as fast as he could but it wasn't enough. Suddenly a dark red explosion tore the area that they had just been standing on apart and it consumed Claymore as his scream called out over the radio for a moment before being cut out in static.

"CLAYMORE!" Luke yelled, spit flying against his visor. Looking at the debris he could see Claymore in the flames and molten metal, still moving. "I've got to do something!" He yelled out and started running with him as he watched Claymore travel over his head and keep moving away. Tears had begun to stream down his face but he kept chasing after him as more parts of the ship exploded.

"_Soldier! There's nothing you can do! The core has been destroyed and the rest of the ship is going down with it. I've radioed for an evac now_."

"No! I'm going to get him!" Nearly skipping across the hull now he spotted a tower that he could get on top of that might be close enough to get a hold of Claymore.

"_Sword? Can you hear me?_" Claymore's voice was filled with static and he sounded distressed. Luke brought up his vitals and could see that his heartbeat was erratic and he was suffering from significant blood loss.

"I can hear you buddy," he replied back, choking back some tears as he kept following him. More explosions tore up through the ship's spine and he had to stop to avoid them but he started back again.

"_Stop coming after me. There's no need for both of us to die_." When he heard this he coughed back sudden convulsion in his chest and had to swallow the spit that was filling his mouth.

"Don't say that, I'm almost there." Tossing his pistols to the side and tearing off his load bearing vest he became even more nimble as he kept an eye on the debris field that was already too high above the tower for him to grab hold. Stopping, he collapsed to his knees and tried to catch his breath.

"_You're right though, this view is_," he stopped and Luke could hear a wet cough through the static. "_The view is beautiful_." He smiled a little when he heard this and he tried to look too but his eyes were blurred from crying and he blinked a few times to try and clear them but to no avail. "_Hey Sword_?"

"Yeah?" he whispered back.

"_What's your real name_?" This was almost too much to handle and he had to take a deep breath before he spoke.

"Luke…Luke Wards."

"_Thanks boss_."

"You're not going to tell me yours?" All he heard was static as he watched his friend's body float off into space.

* * *

Luke's eyes were focused on a small scratch on the Titanium-A plating as he sat with his legs in front of him, cocked inwards with his hands resting on his inner thighs. Hunched over, he hadn't moved an inch as he zoned out, the Hoplite slowly destroying itself around him, a few times he hoped it's ammunition would go off and he could get rid of the feeling that had set over him but he stopped them quickly even though it didn't make him feel much better afterwards.

"_Sword, Bugle here, time to get you home_," the comforting voice drawled in his ear and he looked on as a black Pelican flew in near him with it's rear compartment opened up for him. He didn't move for a moment but finally he pushed himself up from the plating and got into the Pelican where he dropped into a seat while the door shut. The ride was a short one and they arrived into the hangar of the _Kamiak_ in only a minute or two. The door to the cockpit opened up and Bugle crouched through and looked over at him. "Ya ready for this? We're the only ones who know right now so take your time if you wanna wait." He looked sympathetic and Luke was thankful for it but he just stood up and made his way to the rear door. Bugle didn't say anything as he punched a button and it opened up slowly. The medical crew was waiting for him, something that had become standard procedure but he was fine. Further back he saw Dagger and Katana standing in their undersuits with smiles on their face. Luke still hadn't removed his as he walked off by himself and he could see their smiles disappear when he was the only one who left. He didn't say a word when he walked hunched over past them both. Katana began to cry and he could hear her sobbing but he didn't feel like speaking to either one of them.

"_The Captain wants to see you before you go to your quarters. It's not about Claymore._" Changing direction, he headed to the bridge through the oddly empty hallways and was waved in by the Marines who were standing guard in front. Looking through the windows he could see that the battle was no longer there, replaced with the blackness of space. Only the navigators were still on deck with Ambresio.

"I'm not going to discuss what just happened, at least not yet. What you do need to know is that Winter Contingency has been declared."

"What's that? Luke said as he removed his helmet, exposing his swollen eyes and stained cheeks.

"Winter Contingency was a plan put in place in case Reach was destroyed. The entire UNSC fleet is being recalled to Earth and is being assigned to the Home Fleet to defend the planet."

"Reach is destroyed?"

"If it isn't already, it will be. The Covenant attacked it with over three hundred ships and overwhelmed the fleet that was stationed there. They held their own for a while but the Super MACs were taken out one by one as troops were landed on the surface. Rumor has it most of the Spartans were wiped out but the _Pillar of Autumn_ was last seen making a jump into Slipspace but there's no word on how many of the Spartans actually made it aboard." Luke didn't say anything for a bit, trying to process everything. Reach was one of the, if not _the_ strongest Human colony outside of Earth. With it gone most of the UNSC's military strength was gone and all that they had left was whoever could get back to Earth. "That's all for now. We'll speak later."

"Aye, sir."


	40. Arrival

"Arrival"

**From: "Sword A80-427" sword_a8042 .mil**

**To: "Trisha Allara" allara_trisha .mil**

**Subject: (No Subject)**

I need the name.

Scanned remotely by ONI security systems on 17 October 2552 at 09:01:37. Delivered 17 October 2552 at 10:29:05

**From: "Trisha Allara" allara_trisha .mil**

**To: "Sword A80-427" sword_a80427 .mil**

**Subject: RE: (No Subject)**

I'm assuming you're talking about Claymore here. I don't have clearance to just start passing that sort of information out, it's eyes only. Speaking with _Petty Officer_ _Chris_ earlier today he said that the files were being sealed until further notice so I'm sorry, I can't be of much more help.

I wish you'd get in contact with me, Sword. I can't imagine what you're going through and I think it'd be beneficial if you came and talked with me about it. Since I don't know where you're at right now I can't really invite you anywhere but if you're near Seongnam and the Special Warfare Center then I'd like to meet up with you. Get back to me if you can, alright?

-Trish

Scanned remotely by ONI security systems on 19 October 2552 at 22:41:32. Delivered 20 October 2552 at 03:07:54

* * *

Luke paced uncomfortably in one of the empty lounges of ODA-92 _Annapolis, _a member of the Mid-Atlantic Orbital Defense Cluster. Paired up with ODA-91 _Philadelphia_ and ODA-93 _Chesapeake_, they defended the enormous sprawling suburbs that stretched from Richmond, Virginia all the way north through Washington, D.C. and up towards Baltimore, Maryland. At one point they were all distinct cities but urban growth over a few hundred years eventually merged the three cities into one developed corridor that stretched for hundreds of miles. It almost connected with Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and the rest of the northern cities but the growth had consistently stalled near Newark, Delaware. The eastern seaboard had become one of the most populated regions in the world but it had avoided becoming a slum and had instead become almost a jewel of affluent living and unrestricted growth. It was an amazing sight from the station as the entire region glowed hundreds of different colors but Luke preferred the silence of the lounge.

Unable to sleep much since they returned to Earth after nearly two weeks of random Slipspace jumps, they had half-expected to find the planet burning but instead it was swarming with hundreds of UNSC vessels that had been recalled after Winter Contingency was declared. And more were still arriving. The most impressive arrival, however, was the UNSC Gettysburg which had arrived back using Covenant Slipspace drives after having been presumed lost at Reach. On board were four Spartans including the legendary Master Chief Petty Officer Spartan-117 and Sergeant Major Avery Johnson. Luke had perked up when he heard Sergeant Johnson's name mentioned and he remembered their brief encounter during the Siege of Paris IV. The pictures of him showed that he had hardly aged although he had collected few scars in the three years since they'd seen each other. And now today Spartan-117 and Sergeant Johnson, as well as Commander Miranda Keyes representing her father were going to be awarded Colonial Crosses on board ODA-142 _Cairo_ in a few minutes.

Still pacing, he finally sat down in one of the black leather chairs that flanked the enormous screen as a pretty reporter was speaking with an image of the exterior of the _Cairo's_ bridge hung over her left shoulder. Luke rubbed his eyes while they burned and his fingers migrated to the bridge of his nose which he massaged for a few seconds. Despite how tired he would get, sleep was hard to come by since he would almost immediately have nightmares about Claymore's death and he would wake up covered in sweat and his mind feeling as if it was about to explode. A psychiatrist had suggested some sedatives so that he could get some sleep but he refused the offer, not wanting to be in some drug induced haze. At the moment he was beginning to regret that decision slightly because he felt sluggish and his body was worn since he hadn't had sleep in over twenty-four hours. Shifting his focus back to the TV, the camera drones zoomed in on a tram as it approached their current location and a large group of Marines began to clap and cheer as Sergeant Johnson and Spartan-117 stepped off the tram. Luke couldn't help but be impressed at the image as the imposing Spartan towered over every one in his dark green armor and signature golden visor. He could see the soldier turn his head slightly towards Johnson who immediately chuckled and said something back as they walked towards the door. The camera angle switched and the reporter stopped speaking as Lord Hood began to go over what it was that they did to deserve the medals but the speech was hilariously short as he spoke about their "enormous deeds" and used other vague language which clearly suggested that whatever they had done was classified. Slumping down in the chair, he watched as the awards were brought out and the two of them stood side-by-side in the bridge of the Cairo which had been filled with Marines and Naval officers. Before they could hand the awards out a Marine walked up next to Lord Hood and whispered something in his ear, causing everyone's attention to shift to a holo-tank next to them. The blue AI appeared out of thin air and spoke a few words that the cameras couldn't pick up. Behind them officers were beginning to move between the consoles and Luke could see the main screens changing around from the default UNSC crest that had been there just a few minutes ago. Now a grid appeared surrounding Earth and the Moon that lit up all of the ships but the camera angled quickly changed to show the attentive officers as they watched the awards ceremony, smartly keeping the screen out of view from the news feed. Lord Hood was handed a small wooden box that he opened up to reveal three small blue medals resting on a bed of velvet. Walking in front of Sergeant Johnson, he pinned it on his chest and spoke a few private words as there was a polite round of applause. Luke was happy to see him receive the medal, especially after his actions on Paris IV. He sensed someone else in the room and turned to see a young man standing in the doorway, surprised when Luke shifted his focus to him.

"Oh, I'm sorry to disturb you, sir," he said and was about to walk away.

"No, it's fine," Luke replied and he turned back towards the screen. The man walked over to the other side of the lounge and sat down in one of the chairs, still looking a little tense in his work uniform compared to Luke lounging around. He mainly ignored him while he put his focus back onto the awards ceremony. The camera zoomed in on Commander Miranda Keyes as she was called from a line of officers behind Lord Hood and she walked up to the front with Sergeant Johnson and Spartan-117 where she about-faced. Lord Hood walked up to her and handed her the medal that was being awarded to her father posthumously although no specifics about what he had done were recounted. He could see a hint of sadness in her face as she held the medal and let her hand drop a little bit but again their attention was grabbed as the AI appeared on her holo-tank. This time, however, the microphone on Lord Hood was still open and it picked up what she was saying.

"_Slipspace ruptures directly off our battle cluster_."

"_Show me_," he shot back while the AI remained standing at an angle, her arms crossed across her chest. They all looked at the screen as the readiness status switched to Alpha 2 and the units in the area were highlighted.

"_Fifteen Covenant capital ships holding position just outside the kill zone_." Already the crew was jumping into action as they set about preparing the station for combat and alarms had begun to flash and sound while the award recipients and Lord Hood monitored the screen.

"_This is Fleet Admiral-_," the news feet instantly cut to a floating UNSC logo as Luke sat up in his chair and glanced over at the young man who seemed to have lost all of his color. A moment later the alarms inside the Annapolis began blaring and they jumped to action. The Covenant had arrived at Earth.


	41. Hard Landing

"Hard Landing"

"HARD STARBOARD!" Ambresio's face was covered in perspiration and the veins in his throat and head were throbbing from the stress of battle and the strain on his body as the nimble ship dove towards Earth where few ships were willing to maneuver in the gravity well. But that was right where he wanted to go. The combination of the g-forces from the quick change of course and Earth's gravity taking hold tugged at their bodies and groans and creaks echoed through the halls of the ship. During the First Battle of Earth, as it had come to be known, the _Kamiak_ joined Fleet Admiral Harper in attacking Regret's fleet as it made a beeline for Africa, the ship taking some moderate damage that was repaired as best it could with the time they had. Luke had been marooned on the _Annapolis_ along with the rest of his team while Ambresio took his ship off to fight. He knew his time would come, everyone did, after Regret made his jump in downtown Mombasa with the _UNSC In Amber Clad_ going too while caught up inside her Slipspace wake that demolished the city and it's elevator. The Covenant had made an almost disastorous mistake but they all knew that they would return stronger and more prepared. That's just what they did.

"Sir! Plasma torpedo missed us but grazed the port engine pylon!" someone yelled out.

"I'm losing thrust and maneuverability," a pilot reported calmly but the stress in his voice was clear.

"Understood, make do with what you can," Ambresio replied back firmly to prevent any sort of panic on his bridge.

"Aye sir." The nimble ship had almost completed it's turn and was now facing it's attacked as the enormous purple ship hovered off in the distance. All around them, hell was being unleashed by both sides as the Covenant armada threw everything they had at the stoic Human defenses. So far they were absorbing what had been thrown at them and were returning the favor as every gun fired at full speed and filled the space around them with artillery sized shells fired like machine guns and the enormous MAC cannon rounds blinking across their field of vision before striking a Covenant ship and blowing a hole through it and knocking it's shields off. Longswords and Seraphs filled the empty space with enormous dogfights as they tried to cut through the flak to reach each the enemy ships. Despite the defenses the Humans were putting up, a few Covenant ships had begun to land on the surface and were deploying troops in different areas which was a rarely used tactic by the Covenant considering they preferred to glass a planet after conquering it, even if the battle itself hadn't been won yet. None of that mattered at the moment to Ambresio who was just focused on shaking the Covenant capital ship that had chosen them as it's target. On it's hull the plasma was already beginning to build and coalesce for another salvo of plasma torpedoes.

"Full ahead! Deploy mines as we pass underneath it!" The crew responded and the _Kamiak_ picked up speed as all of it's engines sprang to life and the ship struggled to go faster. Ambresio knew that they were treading a fine line and if they were too slow the plasma would be able to track them and destroy the ship instantly. His hope was that if they moved fast enough it wouldn't be able to track the as the small ship came towards them. In a few moments he'd know if his gamble would pay off. A few bright flashes of light flickered on the hull and the torpedoes lanced towards them and gripped his chair tightly as it started to arc down towards them. It continued to come closer as the _Kamiak_ dodged a salvo of missiles and flak shells and then Ambresio gave a new order.

"UP!" he roared and the pilot's responded instantly as the ship peeled off of it's course underneath the Covenant vessel and instead came above it's bow, the plasma unable to follow such a fast change of direction. "Roll us!" A moment later they were inverted and two HORNET mines were ejected from their tubes and were instantly attracted towards the Covenant ship. They weren't out of danger yet as point defense guns came to life and began to impact the Kamiak on her topside. Some of the beams pulsed for a second while others lingered in the air and "cut" back and forth, explosions rocking the ship as debris was thrown out from the impacts.

"Hull breaches all over sir, too many to list."

"That's fine," he replied back solemnly and kept his mind focused. He knew that there was nothing that could be done to save those people but he just hoped their deaths weren't in vain. "Rear camera please." A picture-in-picture appeared and the rear camera was focused on the nose of the Covenant vessel when the first mine went off. A blinding flash of light overtook the CCS class cruiser and he could see it's shields flicker and fail. The second detonated a moment later and the explosion tore the bow apart and continued down the hull, taking a full third of the ship off in a matter of seconds. Purple metal was thrown everywhere and plasma was leaking as the hull buckled and warped, nearly shattering in some places while the ship began to lurch and dip further into the atmosphere. In a matter of seconds it was caught in the gravity well and it's loan engine struggled to keep it afloat but it was no match as the purple ship gathered speed and began to make it's fiery descent into the Atlantic Ocean, enormous pieces already being torn off.

"Sir, I don't think we can survive another pass like that."

"Agreed." For a moment everyone was able to breathe a sigh of relief before they would have to dive back into the battle space. Assigned a quadrant near the Mid-Atlantic Orbital Defense Cluster they were attempting to defend Washington, D.C. from a ground invasion that the Covenant seemed hell bent on achieving. So far they had been successful but with the _Philadelphia_ station destroyed and the _Chesapeake_ suffering from a damage tether that was providing insufficient power to fire it's main gun at full speed, the _Annapolis_ had taken up the load and was managing but they were losing ships too quickly and Slipspace ruptures were still appearing off in space as more Covenant ships arrived. One of the few remaining Marathon class cruisers in the fleet was stationed in their quadrant, the _UNSC Seahawk_, but even it's incredible firepower was no match against the enormous might of the Covenant fleet. The _Kamiak's_ ammunition was beginning to run low and there was no hope for them to get resupplied, something that Ambresio had resigned himself to a while ago. He brought up a small screen on his chair and looked at the numbers, only a handful of mines remained, a single Shiva warhead, and a few hundred Archer missiles. They had their cannons but they did nothing against the Covenant ships and so far the Seraphs had been eager to take on larger targets. In the brief moment of peace he massaged his temples and searched for a way out of this but his options were disappearing slowly, one after the other. In the next few minutes he'd have to make some tough decisions about his ship and his crew, but that time hadn't come yet and they'd fight for every inch. "Bring us back around." The battles that were raging elsewhere scanned past the main screen almost in a blur as the _Kamiak_ came back around to face the battle that they were involved in. Already more of the CCS class cruisers had made another push to land while two Assault Carriers waited outside the range of the MAC guns after watching a comrade shredded in seconds by the enormous rounds. Plasma was blasting everywhere as the six ships danced with almost three times as many Human ships of all sizes, explosions filling the space around them. "Firing solutions on the ship there!" Ambresio yelled as he pointed at one of the cruisers that had taken a beating and was trying to limp out of the fight.

"Aye sir, solutions locked in. We're hot!"

"Fire everything!" The weakened superstructure rattled as the Archer pods emptied and their missiles streaked for the ship, the smaller guns firing long golden trails of tracers at the ship. A moment later the missiles impacted all along it's hull and the explosions tore the armor plating apart as it's weapons went offline and atmosphere began to vent with the plasma. One of the missiles seemed to have found it's mark and detonated a small plasma reserved that tore apart most of the underlying framework and the nose broke off from the stress. Lights flickered and dimmed along most of the tope side and it looked dead in the water. One of the other Human ships capitalized on this and sent a MAC round through it's main body, taking the ship out of commission for good as it slowly floated away. The other four were still in fighting shape and were causing a lot of damage to the Human ships that were fighting it out in close quarters with them. Just barely, Ambresio could see the small shapes of the Longswords and Seraphs that had been deployed who were fighting it out in the maelstrom between these enormous crafts.

"Archer pods are empty, sir. Should I jettison them?"

"Go ahead," he replied quietly. They didn't have a ton of mass to them but with them gone it was just the much less the engines had to push around if they needed the extra power. The only weapons they had left were too destructive to deploy near the battle in front of him. "Order all crew to abandon ship."

"Sir?" one of his officers asked.

"I am ordering all crew to abandon ship. We've got nothing left in this fight." His eyes wandered over towards the Assault Carriers who were beginning to edge closer towards the platforms and the battle that was quickly turning in the favor of the Covenant. "That includes you too, Lieutenant."

"Sir…" Luke said, stepping forward from the shadows, silent up until this point.

"Negative on that. Bugle will deploy your team to the surface wherever the Covenant land." It didn't take long for Luke to understand what the Captain was doing.

"Aye sir," he replied with a stiff salute, only getting a solemn nod in return from the Captain. A few stray plasma shots had miraculously found their mark and the ship shook from the impacts. In the background the alarms were sounding and a recorded message by the ship's AI was ordering everyone aboard to their designated escape pod.

"Should I declare mayday?" the communication's officer asked, looking back at Ambresio.

"Negative. Their beacons will get someone's attention or they can land on the surface. I just want as many people off this ship as possible." Ambresio turned around in his seat and saw that Luke was still there, reluctant to leave. "This order replies to you too Lieutenant."

"Sir, let my team try and take one of these ships, we can fight back!" he replied back, stepping forward to signal his frustration.

"And what? Get yourselves killed in the process? This battle won't be won in space, none of them will be! Your team can protect wherever the Covenant try and attack so that you can actually make a difference!" Ambresio was getting frustrated at Luke. He couldn't just abandon the Captain and his ship lightly, even if he knew what it was that he was planning to do. Everyone remained silent as the enormous soldier remained motionless, the only sign of his anger and frustration being the constant flexing of his right fist before it stopped.

"Aye sir."

"Thank-you, Lieutenant," he replied and saluted. Luke saluted once again and stepped off the bridge. "It's time to prepare a present for those Covenant bastards."

Hurrying down the empty corridors, Luke had already ordered Dagger and Katana to the hangar where they had gathered up as much ammo and supplies as they could and were just waiting on a destination. Already Bugle's Pelican was being filled with those same crates which he figured they would need in the coming battle. As he began to run faster there was the subtle change in gravity as the ship changed course and increased his speed a little more. Finally he reached the hangar where a lone Pelican was sitting in front of the main doors, it's engines hissing loudly while it waited to take off. The other two Tempests were standing on the lip of the ship as he approached them, the rear compartment stacked with ammo crates that covered the two sides of the bay but left enough space for them to access the cockpit if needed.

"What's going on?" Katana asked as he approached and hopped into the back.

"Nothing," he lied and he radioed Bugle. "We're all aboard, let's get out of here."

"_You go it sir! Hold onto your asses 'cause this is gonna be a helluva ride_." The rear door began to close and it quickly got very cramped in the rear of the ship. Luke couldn't help himself as he turned his lights on to illuminate the dark space while the Pelican lifted up into the air. Instead of the normal smooth exit into space there was a sudden lurching and the plastic crates shook a little while a few tipped over and fell.

"What was that?" he asked rhetorically.

"_The hangar doors were blown off so that we could leave faster_," Nathan replied, still monitoring the Kamiak remotely.

"Bugle…I want to see what's going on," Luke said as he made his way to the door.

"_Sounds good, we seem to be in a safe spot for now_." With the door open, Luke hunched over the cockpit seat and looked out into space as the Pelican sped away from the ship and turned back towards it. The Assault Carriers had moved in even closer and they were beginning to clean up whatever remnants of the UNSC fleet remained in the area. The whole time the _Annapolis_ was firing it's main gun as it thinned the number of CCS cruisers to one who was attempting to flee the deadly platform but it just couldn't get away before the _Chesapeake_ sniped it. It was now a standoff between the two sides while the Annapolis reloaded the Chesapeake waited for it's capacitors to recharge which would probably take more time than they had. Already the small dots of escape pods were moving away from the stations while a skeleton crew remained to fight until the end. Luke noticed that he was shaking his head slightly, frustrated and disappointed with how things had turned out. He turned his focus back towards the _Kamiak_ which was picking up speed as all of it's engines came to life. In a moment the black ship was almost invisible against the backdrop of space and he could only keep track of it by it's engines that were getting smaller every second. With no ammo to fire the, ship would become it's own weapon as it made a beeline for the Assault Carriers who were flying in a tight formation.

"Why couldn't he have just let the ship does this on autopilot? He didn't need to stay aboard," Luke said over his speakers.

"True, but this man's turf is space on his ship. What's he gonna do without her while he's stuck on the ground? You can't just go separating the two of them like that," Bugle replied, edging the Pelican closer but still staying a ways away.

"We could've fought our way on board! We could've prevented them from landing!" Luke walked out of the cockpit frustrated while Dagger and Katana looked on silently. "We could've turned the battle around!"

"Lieutenant, things look a whole lot simpler when you're looking at a plan from afar. You really think you and your team, no disrespect, could've taken on a ship full of Covenant and flown that thing around Earth kicking ass? Your job is to land safely and defend D.C. from these freaks while the Captain does what he thinks is right." Luke still thought the whole thing was wrong but he kept his mouth shut and watched silently. As the Kamiak got closer the point defense guns came to life as the small weapons began to cut at the _Kamiak_ and parts were blown off as she rocked back and forth but maintained a steady course, either through her own power or inertia carrying it forward. It's own guns were firing back almost laughably but it almost seemed fittingly that whatever that ship had left was going to be thrown at the Covenant. Parts of the hull continued to be blown away from the withering attacks as the Kamiak dove in between the two enormous ships and disappeared from sight. Luke unconsciously held his breath as everything went silent then a moment later he had to look away from the blinding light that engulfed the ships and space around them. Finally looking back a moment later he could see the enormous nuclear explosion tearing the two ships apart in a wonderful display of carnage while their reactors went off, adding to the spectacle. Luke couldn't see any remnants of the Kamiak in the center while the wreckage of the Assault Carriers flew away from the source of the explosions, most of the pieces still glowing a bright orange from the heat of the explosion. No one said anything for a few moments while they surveyed the scene in front of them.

"_It appears the Captain used the remaining mines combined with the Shiva warhead to magnify the yield. There's no other way they could've achieved an explosion of that magnitude_," Nathan finally said.

"That's genius," Luke whispered back as he leaned away from Bugle, his emotions muted. When he watched Claymore die it was a completely different feeling as he was overcome by the grief of watching someone he considered to be his brother die. But this time he felt numb. He had no idea why but it didn't seem to affect him the same way and he worried that he had already become accustomed to the death of his friends and loved ones, a thought that was almost terrifying to him. "Look," he said and he pointed out towards the Cluster. Three CCS cruisers had come in from the blind spot of the stations and were beginning to dismantle them with their smaller guns. Wreckage was already falling away from them as they tumbled back into the atmosphere, the last line of defense against an invasion force landing being destroyed in front of them. "We need to get onto the surface. Covenant troops are going to be swarming the city in no time."

"Shit…" warnings were flashing on the screens around Bugle and he ignored Luke's comment. "Seraphs have a lock on us. We gotta move and _fast_!" Luke thought about how unfair it was. He'd just watched the man who had basically been his father figure for years sacrifice himself only for more Covenant ships to slip through the line and land in spite of him. But he stopped his self-pity before it overtook him, realizing that he'd given them the lesser of two evils, by destroying the Assault Carriers who would have almost no problem overrunning the city and it's defenders. Now they were up against the smaller CCS class cruisers who weren't as well equipped for an invasion, but were still deadly in their own right. The final nail in the coffin of this train of thought was hammered into place when Bugle fired up the Pelican's engines to full power and they hurtled towards the wreckage of the _Annapolis_ and away from the Seraph fighters pursuing them. Plasma zipped past them but Bugle was a master of his ship and she danced back and forth without losing speed and avoided getting hit as they made the sprint for the atmosphere. Unlike the UNSC's aircraft that could operate equally as well in space as they did on a planet, the Seraph fighters lacked any control surfaces and were strictly designed for space combat only. It was a common tactic for a UNSC pilot to dump into the atmosphere of a nearby planet if possible to lose a Seraph if they couldn't shake them. Using the still burning chunks of metal from the station, they snaked between the floating debris and made their way into Earth's atmosphere and followed the two cruisers who were landing, leaving enormous scars in the sky as they burned their way to the surface. The Seraphs pursued for a few moments before they started to wobble back and forth and pulled back up before they got trapped in the gravity well. Luke was a little surprised when Bugle seemed to relax considering they still had to reenter the atmosphere which posed it's own problems. Flames roared across their belly and wings as the thickening air created so much drag that plasma wisped off their leading edges and the metal began to glow a bright orange. As the vacuum of space was replaced with the nitrogen and oxygen air around them the sounds that had been escaping them for the entire battle came rushing back and the roar of the flames and air around them was nearly deafening. Most of the East Coast had been blanketed in over a foot of snow from an enormous Nor'easter that had covered the entire region for almost a week. It had let up but not before brining temperatures near zero Fahrenheit and freezing most of the inland waterways and some of the main coastline. It was a beautiful scene as the white lands stretched as far as the eye could see, the skies bluer than normal but off in the distance Luke spotted another large front moving in near West Virginia that was sure to cause some problems as it moved through D.C. "Looks like some Covenant forces had already snuck into the area," Bugle commented after he had taken back control of his ship and continued their descent over the Atlantic, near the DelMarVa peninsula.

"What?"

"Yeah, apparently another Cruiser snuck in from the North over Canada and took up position south of Baltimore but not before depositing some AA guns along the Chesapeake Bay, basically shutting down that approach corridor. Or so the computer is saying."

"What are we going to do, then?" Luke asked, frustrated at this setback. He could already see the tiny specks of the Cruisers near where he figured the city was at and knew the fight was already being waged and they weren't anywhere close to getting involved.

"A small contingent of Marines landed on the other side of the bridge on the Peninsula," Bugle said, pointing to the narrow crossing that had been used for hundreds of years to get people from the Peninsula to the mainland. "They'll most likely have some ground transports that we could use to drive into the city. It shouldn't be too far, maybe an hour at most."

"Alright, sounds good," he replied and stepped out of the cockpit to relay the news to his team and formulate a new plan. He closed the door and waded through the crates to the two of them as they stood silently. "Ran into a few problems, looks like the Covenant snuck in underneath our noses without anyone knowing and they've got the city locked down from the air. We'll have to get into D.C. on the ground somehow." Neither one of them had a chance to respond when suddenly the Pelican began to shake back and forth violently. Luke instantly reached for the swinging netting over his head and grabbed a hold tight to keep his footing as they continued to juke back and forth. "What's going on!?" he radioed to Bugle but got no response. Crates topped over each other and a number of them came crashing onto him and cracked open, spilling magazines all over the floor around him. There was too much in the way for him to get to the door to look for himself but thankfully Nathan gave him a report on what was happening.

"_A number of Banshees have gotten on our tail and we're currently evading them as he tries to land._" Another series of violent jolts and he got a better grip on the stuff around him but the maneuvers were getting more and more aggressive and it appeared they were going to be on their side for a moment before they leveled back out. They were all cursing each time as they were thrown into a wall or something fell on them but they went silent as a loud explosion rocked the Pelican and flames licked at the front left corner of the compartment and smoke was beginning to pour in. Luke's heart skipped a beat when this happened and he looked at the others before looking back at what had happened. Kicking the crates out of his way, he finally reached the door and punched it open. Instead of being greeted to the cockpit of the Pelican he was instead hit with a blast of air that carried with it flames and smoke from where a Banshee had blow the cockpit away. Amazingly enough the rest of the ship was still intact and they had lift but there was no control of the engines or their control surfaces and the Pelican was making a straight line for the ground.

"Nathan! Get control of this thing!"

"_I'll do the best I can_." Instantly he could feel the ship strain against the damage and he closed the front door while moving back towards the rear door.

"This thing won't last long," Dagger said as he watched Luke march to the rear door.

"I know, we just need to get lower," he replied and punched the emergency lock on the door, the explosive bolts firing as the heavy metal panel twisted away from them. Thick black smoke was pouring out of the ship and long trails of flames were roaring out of the exposed fuel lines near their front port engine which was severely limiting their view. Thankfully they were now over land but the Pelican was still traveling at a high rate of speed and jumping now would almost certainly cause serious injuries. "Bring us lower, I don't want to risk it from this high up."

"_This Pelican is hardly responsive. Most of it's flaps are damaged or locked in placed. I can get you close to the ground but this thing is crashing one way or another_."

"Understood." Glancing back, he could see the Banshees following behind them but they weren't shooting, most likely making sure the ship was dead. Down below the snow covered pines were slowly getting closer and closer as they whipped past in a constant blur. Occasionally a road or houses were visible but for the most part the area was barren.

"Just looking at the map…we should come in pretty damn close to where we wanted to," Dagger said. "But I don't see any information about those Marines coming up. Are you sure they're there?"

"No," Luke replied. "If they're not there then we'll figure something else out."

"Got it."

"Once we're about ready to jump, start pushing whatever ammo we can out the back. We'll need what we can but there's no way we can take all of this with us," Luke said and he began to search for the essentials. A sudden jolt caught his attention and he looked back to see an enormous chunk of their wing flipping through the air, engulfed in flames. The Pelican remained relatively stable but there was a nasty vibration throughout the entire frame and he could feel them descending faster.

"_Prepare to jump, soldier. This Pelican won't last much longer_." He relayed the order to his team and they edged to the front of the door, a few crates at their feet. Dagger was the first to go and he kicked some out before falling out the back and assuming what amounted to a fetal position. Katana followed quickly with more ammo and did the same while Luke prepared himself as well. He had only a second of hesitation but it felt like an eternity as the ground below hurtled past him. In a matter of minutes two people he considered close to him had died fighting the Covenant and yet he remained unscathed. He knew it was some form of survivor's guilt but he couldn't understand why everyone around him continued to die while he was able to keep fighting. There were so many times where he should've died for one reason or another but every time he managed to escape the clutches of death by the skin of his teeth and was able to turn it around and claim victory. When would his luck run out? He thought to himself before taking a step off the ramp. Plummeting through the black smoke and flames he was able to catch a glimpse of the crippled craft as it continued to fly away before Nathan plunged it into the Earth. It skipped off a snow bank at first before it dropped back into the ground and exploded in huge fireball that rolled up into the sky. Thick black smoke poured out of the impact crater as flaming debris continued to flip and bounce over the frozen ground before coming to a stop. Only a moment after it crashed, the two Banshees strafed the crash site with their dual plasma cannons and then fired a Fuel Rod Cannon at it just to make sure there were no survivors. Luke had to turn his attention back towards his own landing however as he hurtled through the air, nearly missing a small cluster of trees that would've braced his fall. Unable to get his body in the right position he tried to brace as much as he could as he fell towards the ground and slammed into a snow bank. Instantly he was thrown back up into the air while his forward momentum pushed him forward, the initial impact spinning his body around while he lost all sense of direction. He plowed into the ground a second time and was again thrown back up into the air, but not as high as before and under a little bit more control. Almost unbearable pain was washing over his body and a number of areas had lost all sensation. It felt like fluid was already building up in his lungs and his vision was blurry and shaking from the impacts. He caught a glimpse of the horizon for a second and saw that he was about to hit again and clenched his teeth in anticipation of the coming pain. For a third time he careened into the snow covered ground but this time he stayed out of the air and slid for about fifteen feet before coming to a stop, motionless with his body in a contorted and uncomfortable position. A biting wind whipped across the open plains and small pieces of snow slowly began to deposit on his black armor.

**A/N: Apologies for the long delay in getting this chapter up. Speaking with a friend I told him that Claymore's death had actually taken an unexpected toll on me and I decided to take a few days off to refocus. It'll probably be another chunk of time till the next chapter will be out but I hope you'll think it's worth it since I've got some crazy stuff in store. I also wanted to just point out now that I've decided I'm going to split this story into two books instead of the originally planned two. The story will be the same, but I just want to take a little break from this once I've finished. Thanks for reading and hold onto yer butts!**


	42. Bay Bridge

"Bay Bridge"

"Awww man…he hit hard…"

"Yeah, you could see him flipping all over the place. I'm surprised he's still in one piece."

"Well he may be goo inside that suit, for all we know." Luke could hear the muffled voices over the howling wind around him and for a second he was without pain before it came rushing over his body. He didn't want to open his eyes but he slowly pried one apart and saw snow pressed up against his visor, almost completely covering it. Opening his left eye the HUD came to life as the grid structure appeared on screen and information scrolled across in soft blue text that he could hardly see. In his mind he did a quick check of his body while he wiggled his toes to make sure he wasn't paralyzed and twitched his fingers. Both responded and he gritted his teeth as he clawed at the snow and pushed himself up onto his knees. Three Marines were crouched next to him in arctic camo and bundled up, their faces covered with gray masks and orange snow goggles attached to their helmets. All around the wind was whipping at the snow the loose flakes snaked across the uneven ground creating a white haze. To the East a bright orange and pink glow melted into a soft blue sky as the sun began to rise and make the snow sparkle, the temperature still well below freezing. The Pelican wreck was still smoldering but the thick black column of smoke had been replaced with a few thin wisps that were quickly pulled away by the wind.

"Are you alright, sir?" one the Marines asked, to his left.

"Yeah," he replied, ignoring the pain that was still wracking his body although it was lessening ever so slightly.

"We're the last of the squad deployed to protect the AA guns and the bridge. Covenant hit us hard and took the guns out and swarmed across the bay towards D.C. We saw your bird crash and came here to see if there were any survivors but so far you're the only one we've found." Luke didn't like the sound of that.

"Where did you look?" he shot back, his mind now focused on locating the remainder of his squad.

"Just around the crash site. A few ammo crates made it out but most everything was burned by the Banshees."

"There were two others in my squad, they should've landed farther East of the crash, did you look there?"

"No sir, we just looked around the bird and then found you a few minutes ago," the Marines replied sheepishly.

"Ok," Luke replied and stood up, the pain flooding his mind but it went away after a few seconds and became a dull ache. His HUD wasn't displaying their markers and he brought up his TAC map and their locators pinged on the display. Katana landed closer to their position and was almost directly in line with the flight path of the Pelican but it looked like Dagger had been thrown to the side a little bit. Luke decided to go after Katana and gave the Marine the coordinates for Dagger's location. "Stay in contact, we're done for if those Banshees come by again." The snow was a lot deeper than he had anticipated, rising up past his knees and sometimes higher in other areas, but he powered through it with his rifle at the ready as he made his way towards Katana. Surveying the area he could see the pine trees covered in snow and small strip malls and housing developments off in the distance. Despite hundreds of years passing, the area had remained relatively unchanged from it's boating and resort roots, especially since the space elevator outside of Annapolis pulled most of the shipping away from the bridge. Every once in a while a break in the trees would give him a glimpse of the enormous Chesapeake Bay Bridge but he couldn't see anything more than it's support towers which were still standing, something he was thankful to see. As he got closer to Katana's position he kept his eyes glued to the ground to try and find where she was, most likely buried under some of the snow blowing around. Finally he spotted a black gauntlet under a small snow drift and he rushed over towards her. Gently brushing the snow away he saw her lying face down and motionless. He still wasn't getting any sort of a response from her suit despite the distance and he brushed more snow off her back and opened the back panel to the suit. All of the lights were off except for the computer screen that showed the suit in standby mode. It only took a moment for him to reactivate the power and she immediately went limp as the hydrostatic gel returned to it's normal state. He winced when this happened, hoping she didn't have any injuries that could've been made worse by this sudden violent motion. However, once the quick diagnostic from her suit appeared on his screen he was pleased to see that everything seemed to be fine. He rolled her over onto her back and gently shook her shoulders to try and get her to wake up but Katana remained unconscious but he knew that they probably didn't have the time to just wait for her to wake up. Reaching back into his backpack he found a small medkit and pulled out a syringe of adrenaline that he inserted into the small receptor port on her wrist. Impatiently, he waited for the drugs to take their effect but after about ten seconds he saw her body jerk slightly and she looked over at him as he knelt beside her.

"Hey, how are you feeling?" he asked quietly.

"Uh…alright considering…" she replied back, sounding groggy and disoriented. He laughed a little and came closer as he helped her sit up.

"Sorry to rush this along but we've got to get out of the open and figure out our plan of attack. Here, let me help you walk." Scooping her up onto her feet, she wrapped her right arm around his shoulders as he helped her walk towards the Marines who he could see huddled around Dagger. "How is he?" he radioed out to them.

"_I'm fine_…" Dagger replied gruffly, sounding disoriented as well.

"Good to hear. You see that building near your position? By that fuel station? Head there and we'll rendezvous with you in a few minutes."

"_Got it_." Across what looked like a large eight land roadway he could see a few squat buildings huddled around a fueling station and convenience store that would provide them with some shelter from the weather and a little protection from nearby Covenant until they were ready to get going again. Katana still wasn't a hundred percent as Luke took her across the open road and through the parking lot, a noticeable limp in her step. Luke wanted to stop and take a look at it but it was too dangerous to do it in the open so he pushed forward as they entered the deserted lobby of one of the buildings. All of the lights were off inside but enough light was reflected off the snow to illuminate the interior of the surf shop to let them see fine. One of the Marines was crouched behind a shelf and motioned for them to go upstairs and so he continued to help Katana up to the second floor where Dagger and the other two Marines were waiting in a small café. Floor to ceiling windows bathed the room in a muted white light and they could hear the wind gently pushing some of the furniture that was still sitting on the deck around in the thick snow.

"How are you?" Luke asked as he came up next to Dagger. He kept moving and put Katana down against a refrigerator before coming back to the three of them.

"As good as I could hope considering I jumped out of a plane," he replied with a little laugh. Luke smiled behind his helmet and then forced his mind onto what they'd have to do next.

"Did you see any Covenant troops land in the area?" he asked one of the Marines, a Sergeant who had pulled his facemask down and his goggles up on his helmet.

"I didn't see anyone get dropped off but there were a few Phantoms in the area so it's possible they dropped some baddies off without us seeing them."

"Is there any equipment that we can use? Weapons? Ammo? Vehicles?"

"Last I saw we had all of that. Pretty basic stuff though, just some BR55s, pistols, and ammo for them. We also had three Warthogs parked nearby." This was music to Luke's ears but he kept his emotions tempered, knowing that the Covenant most likely would've destroyed everything in the area if they had landed troops or if the Banshees had decided to stick around for a while. "We were set up near the base of the Bridge so it should only be about a mile or so away from here, maybe a little more."

"We're going to need those Warthogs to get to the city. Nathan, do we have Bee-Net access?"

"_Give me a moment_," the AI responded. "_Patuxtent Air Station has one drone on standby that I can requisition_."

"Do it. I want images of the AA guns and the surrounding areas. We need to know if anything is even there before making a push to the bridge." The Bee-Net was an automated drone system that utilized small stealth fighters to survey and possibly attack targets in their designated kill box. Luke hadn't seen them deployed too many times but Earth had a large number of the drones and he expected they were seeing heavy service. The fact that one was still on the ground was quite surprising considering their effectiveness.

"_It's a few minutes out, I'll upload the images right to you once I've got them_," he replied in his ear. Luke didn't respond but made his way over to Katana who was still sitting on the floor.

"Are you alright?"

"Yeah, my right leg is still sore. It probably got thrown around when I landed but I don't remember anything." The lack of concern in her voice was comforting but Luke was still questioning how much she was letting on.

"You'd tell me if you injury was worse, right?"

"Of course," she said, not convincing him in the slightest. His mask held the grim look he had on his face as he walked past Dagger and the other Marines towards the windows. The wind was still blowing the snow everyone in rhythmic pulses over the snow banks, the exposed trees almost bent at a permanent angle. He frowned at the conditions despite his suit keeping him in a controlled environment but that wouldn't make the going any easier while they dealt with the snow and ice that were sure to complicate their journey into D.C.

"_Drone is arriving on station; we should have pictures in a few moments_." Luke waited silently at the window, his right hand twitching over his pistol even though he didn't sense any sort of danger. Suddenly a small box appeared on his HUD that enlarged to show a detailed image of the AA guns and the equipment that was surrounding them. Glancing off in the distance he heard the rumbling of the drone's powerful engines and could just barely spot the black spot darting across the sky. Shifting his focus back onto the image, he could see the frozen bodies of Marines partially buried by snow and their weapons scattered between the large batteries. Crates were toppled over and there were a large number of black craters where it looked like munitions went off. Unfortunately he couldn't see the Warthogs anywhere in the picture but he kept his emotions in check until he had more information. A second later another batch were uploaded and Nathan quickly combined them into a larger image. A few small groupings of trees were near the road that could be used to both sneak up on the air and to also hold a Covenant ambush. Looking around some more he finally spotted what he wanted when he saw the three Warthogs parked off near one of the groupings of trees to the South. One of them was the transport variant that replaced the M41 LAAG with more seats and a small canopy to carry extra troops. Each of them was sporting a pretty well done arctic camouflage scheme that would help them a little bit if anyone was monitoring the roads, potentially giving them a few precious moments of surprise if they ran into any Covenant. All of the images had a thermal counterpart and he quickly scanned them for any sign of Covenant but nothing was showing up, not ruling out that there were ground forces operating in the area.

"The Warthogs are still there," he said, turning away from the window towards the others. "No baddies showed up on thermal but I still want us to move carefully. Sergeant, I want you to take your men through the tree line to the North while we'll move up the highway. If you run into any Covenant you're to disengage and wait till we link up. This isn't a time to be a hero."

"Yes sir," the Sergeant replied and he pulled the mask up over his mouth and nose and dropped the goggles back down over his eyes. He nudged the Corporal next to him and they hurried down the stairs. Katana had heard him speaking and was up on her feet but he could see that her movement was stiff, a far cry from her fluidity and agility that she could normally display. He let the urge to question her about her condition pass and pulled his rifle out and led them down the stairs out into the weather. He immediately activated his cloaking and decided on a course.

"We'll stay near that divider there," he said, pointing to the metal barrier that had prevented snow from building up too much on the North side. "If we get hit on our right we'll just hop over and make for the nearest cover."

"Sounds good," Dagger said and the three of them made their way to the barrier. Staying low, he kept his eyes peeled as they moved forward slowly, the wind blowing the snow into his visor and obscuring his vision beyond a few feet as the particles fell off the lip. For a moment he thought that he heard the wailing of a Banshee off in the distance, his enhanced senses cutting through the conditions around him, but after a few moments of remaining frozen in place he eased up and continued moving forward. They made steady but slow progress down the roads, stopping every few minutes to check the area for signs of the enemy before pushing forward again. The snow wasn't too much of a burden but Luke knew that it would probably give them problems if they needed to maneuver quickly. Eventually they rounded the final corner and could see the AA batteries smoldering in the snow off in the distance, the enormous Chesapeake Bay Bridge rising up into the blue sky. Luke motioned for his team to stop and he began to scan the area for any potential enemies. Back and forth he checked the trees and the surrounding snow banks but couldn't see any sign of Covenant forces.

"Looks clear…" he thought out loud. He looked back at his team and they remained motionless as he stared into their mirrored visors. A subtle nod from Dagger gave him the go ahead and he jumped to his feet, rifle ready to snap up at any moment. With his eyes set on one of the blown out AA batteries nearest their location he began to plow through the snow with almost no problems. All of the sudden, an orange spike whistled past his head followed by a few more. His eyes snapped to the treeline and he spotted a Brute flying up into the air, it's jetpack pushing it up into the air before the engines disengaged and the Brute dropped out of the sky before turning them back on at the last second and bringing him to a slow stop. In a moment, Luke had snapped his BR55 up to his shoulder and fired off two bursts, still running towards the battery. Dagger and Katana had jumped into action and were sending rounds down range at the Brute, four more of the creatures emerging from the trees near the Warthog. A few more spikes hissed past Luke but he was unscathed as he slid in behind the gun platform and returned fire.

"_Coming out!_" Dagger radioed and Luke kept the pressure up as his team mate bolted across the open ground, avoiding the rounds as he sprinted to Luke's position.

"Katana, hold your position while we draw their attention. Move south and we'll come in from here." Luke didn't wait for a response from Katana when he radioed the Marines. "Sergeant, get you and your men here as soon as possible. We have enemy contact and it probably won't be long before they have reinforcements on the cusp."

"_Got it sir_," he replied a moment later sounding slightly winded, most likely from the terrible terrain. He glanced over at Katana and couldn't see her anymore, her camo activated as her waypoint traveled across the snow field towards the trees. Keeping his camo off to keep the Brutes drawn to him, Luke popped out and squeezed off a few bursts at the nearest Brute who was still on the ground. A couple of the rounds slammed into it's armored chest and there were a few puffs of purple blood that splattered onto the snow. As it got closer Luke noticed that it's armor was slightly different than he'd seen before. Instead of the bright pastels of the other Brutes, these wore a dark gray armor with a helmet that covered their entire head, a single red "eye" sitting in the center of the helmet

"I've never seen a Brute with this type of armor," Luke commented.

"_Neither have I, maybe that's why we couldn't see them? Stealth_?" With his rifle centered on the Brute again, one of his comrades suddenly melted into the air.

"I think that's your answer." Pulling a grenade off of his vest, Luke threw it over the head of the first Brute and let it land in the middle of the group. A few seconds passed and it exploded in a bright flash of orange and red before quickly falling away in a cloud of dark smoke. Blue sparks began to erupt in the air and the Brute that had gone invisible roared with rage as his armor malfunctioned and he became visible again. Luke stepped out to fire off a few bursts but he noticed something orange in the corner of his eye and ducked back behind the battery as an incendiary grenade detonated on the corner of the weapon. Liquid flames spread across the metal and dripped into the snow, the immense heat shocking Luke as he took a few steps back. After a couple more seconds the flames died down and he poked his head around the corner and could see that the metal was still red hot and the snow around the base had melted away and was steaming. A quick combined assault from Luke and Dagger dropped the lead Brute who quickly lost his head after two bursts from BR55s and forced the remaining two to be more cautious and ducked away to avoid more fire. It was already too late however because Katana appeared behind the two remaining Brutes and opened up with her rifle, peppering their backs with bullets. Luke and Dagger capitalized on the moment and pressed their assault, taking down the two Brutes almost simultaneously. Even though they were dead Luke remained on guard and took a knee in the snow and scanned the area for any other Covenant troops, stopping momentarily when he saw the Marines appear on the edge of the forest.

"_Friendly_!" the Sergeant radioed, raising his hand up for a second.

"Looks all clear," Luke said and got up onto his feet. "Let's get these Warthogs up and get moving." Everyone hurried over to the Warthogs and regrouped to make sure everyone was on the same page. "We need to take the freeway until we hit the Beltway and can link up with some UNSC forces and figure out what the hell is going on. You three take that one," Luke said, motioning from the Marines to one of the Warthogs. "And you two will come with me," he said to Dagger and Katana. Dagger quickly jumped into the driver seat and Katana sat down next to him in the passenger seat, leaving Luke to man the gun which he wasn't opposed to. Hopping up onto the tri-barreled gun he made sure it was ready to go then turned the gun on. The Marines joked with each other and they pushed each other around before they settled who was doing what. Once both vehicles were ready to go Luke gave the order to move out and they sped off towards the Bay Bridge.


	43. Rumors of Discontent

"Rumors of Discontent"

Snow flew up off the back of the oversized treads and left dirty tire tracks in the wake of the Warthog as it powered through the slick conditions, the Bridge getting closer as every second passed. Luke felt a chill through his armor and his shivers automatically turned the internal temperature up a few degrees but for some reason he preferred to let the cold touch his skin. He glanced back at the Marines who were hunched up to protect themselves from the biting cold air that surrounded them and he was momentarily jealous although he had no idea why. In that moment his mind snapped to all of those people who were close to him who had died and he could feel his emotions beginning to slip out of his control.

"Oh _shit_! Banshees!" He snapped his eyes back towards the gunner on the Marines' Warthog and traced a line from his index finger into the blue sky. Three small dots were moving towards them quickly and it took a split second for him to recognize the distinct shape of the Banshee. Turning his head to look at the road ahead of them they were only a few seconds from getting onto the bridge which would severely limit their maneuverability. However, stopping to turn around wouldn't give them a better shot so he kept his mouth shut and settled into the gun. His hands tensed up around the triggers and he pulled them in to within a hair's width of firing but stopped and waited.

"_I wish I had my rifle with me_," Katana said as she grunted, turning around in her seat to get into a better position to fire her BR-55. "If _we're lucky I could put a slug through the nose_."

"Mmm, conserve ammo. Let the LAAG tear it apart," Luke replied tersely but he knew that she would still do her part. There was a slight jolt and their angle changed as the Warthog got onto the bridge. A cable-stayed design, two enormous white towers held up the enormous deck that spanned the Chesapeake Bay. Short walls stood up on either side of the road that wouldn't do much to stop them if they run into the barriers at full speed. Beneath them the frozen bay shone a bright white in the morning sun as the snow skated across the slick surface. Luke's focus returned to the Banshees as they continued to barrel down on them but they were still just out range. To complicate matters, Dagger began to swerve back and forth to avoid abandoned cars that littered the road, covered in snow that had fallen long ago.

"_Hold on_!" He advised a little too late while Luke got his footing back and readied his first burst at the Banshees. A few more seconds passed before he squeezed the triggers completely and tensed up as the gun kicked to life. The barrel quickly spun up to full speed and the bullets chugged out at a quickening pace before it became a steady roar. Shell casings spilled out of gun and bounced off the floor of the Warthog. The illuminated rounds arced up into the sky and Luke's visor was lit up orange from the flames that surrounded the ends of the barrels. He continued to adjust his aim so that the rounds were being led properly and after a few seconds of adjustments he saw blue sparks and pieces of the Banshee erupt off it's nose. His attack was quickly answered when all three raked their Warthogs with plasma fire but nothing vital was hit and a few moments later the three of them roared over their heads. Luke swung the gun around to press the attack and it only took a few seconds before he opened fire again and sent a stream of bullets out towards the lead Banshee. Smoke began to trail off of the craft as it bobbed and weaved in the air, the other two peeling off and coming back at the Warthogs.

"You keep the fire on them!" Luke screamed, holding the gun steady with one arm as his other pointed towards the two that were coming back at them. He saw the Marine nod and swung his gun around but their Warthog had to cut sharply to avoid a derelict vehicle and he almost fell off the gun. Luke didn't want to let the other one escape but the two coming at them would have a perfect chance to tear them apart. As plasma whined around them he aimed at one of the Banshees and unleashed his fury. The enormous rounds chewed up the front of the Banshee but it remained steady and continued firing despite more and more pieces exploding off of it. While the Marine still struggled to get back into the firing position the second Banshee fired off it's fuel rod cannon. The enormous green ball of plasma came at them slowly but Luke had to duck out of the way as his skin blistered. A moment later the cannon shot exploded behind him and a second wave of heat washed over his body while the concussion rocked him and the Warthog. The rear end swung out towards the edge and the tires bounced up and down trying to get some sort of traction. They came close to the edge of the road before Dagger was able to get control back and get them going the right direction, not a moment too soon as they narrowly avoided an abandoned truck. As he turned back to look for the third Banshee he saw it fire off it's fuel rod cannon at them. It only took a second for the enormous round to explode on the front end of the Warthog and engulf it in plasma. Instantly the vehicle detonated in a wave of orange flames and burning wreckage was hurled forward at Luke, the Warthog flipping end over end behind him. He saw one of the mutilated bodies of the Marines thrown from the Warthog, his leg missing and body covered in flames, and slide across the road before being lost in the thick smoke and snow that was being pushed around. Luke didn't have time to mourn their deaths but instead aimed his gun and fired off another burst at the first Banshee that he'd hit. More and more tore the nose apart when one suddenly found it's mark and a cloud purple blood exploded out the back of the Banshee and it swerved down into one of the cables, exploding in a shower of blue flames and purple metal. "One down!"

"_Good, we're getting near the end of the bridge_," Dagger replied quickly. Luke could see a slight bend forming in the bridge which confirmed Dagger's observation. "_Oh sh-!_" Blistering heat rushed over Luke's body and he could feel himself lifted up into the air and for a moment everything was black. It only lasted a second and he looked up at the sky as pieces of the bridge fell in a cloud of dust and the last wisps of a fuel rod cannon dissipated. It then dawned on him that he was falling off the side of the bridge and he looked to his right to see the Warthog nosing over before crashing into the ice. Luke didn't have time to brace for the impact before the wind was knocked from his lungs when he slammed into the ice on his back. He coughed violently while waiting for his diaphragm to recover, rolling onto his stomach and pulling his pistol out despite being almost completely useless against a Banshee. Scrambling on his hands and knees he finally caught a breath and continued making his way towards the Warthog which was obscured by some smoke and steam. On his motion tracker he saw two circles moving slowly and could see Dagger and Katana pulling themselves away from the wreck. Both seemed dazed from the impact and were slow to get away from the Warthog but thankfully were able to avoid a quick strafe from a nearby Banshee. The damaged one swung around and began to come in at a better angle to try and finish them off. Luke aimed his pistol and squeezed off a quick burst that distracted the aircraft as it changed direction and roared past his head. He continued running away from the Warthog and fired off another burst to make sure they knew he was up and running.

"I'm drawing their attention! Get that gun going!" Luke called out over the radio as he turned around to fire off another few shots. The two Banshees had lined up behind him and opened fire, the plasma slicing through the ice and causing it to crack and hiss as it melted away. The ice groaned and creaked as Luke's enormous legs pounded onto the surface and he heard a piece finally give way while water exploded up through the cracks and sprayed into the air. He glanced back and saw Dagger flip the Warthog over and could see that the gun looked like it was still in good condition. As the Banshees flew over his head again he cut back and slowed down to a jog while they came back around, giving Dagger the time to get into the turret. A moment passed and they were coming back around for another chance to take him down. Their stream of plasma began to tear the ice apart again and one of the bolts hit him in the back and he winced in pain from the heat as his shields flared up. Then Dagger opened fire and he watched the stream of tracers cut through the air, the sudden attack catching the wounded Banshee off guard and it detonated in a flash of blue plasma. The Banshee didn't blow completely apart, though, and the main hulk came at the Warthog and slammed into the front as Dagger leapt off it. Glass shattered while metal wrenched and groaned and as the smoke and steam cleared Luke could see that the Warthog's front right suspension had been completely destroyed and the engine had some serious damage done to it. Luke ignored his, though, and hurried over to Katana to check on her. He popped her helmet off as the seal hissed apart and let a wave of warm air steam out, her brown hair falling into the snow as he laid her down. There was a grimace on her face and Luke softly brought his gloved fingers across her cheeks and a small smile crept up in the corners.

"Are you alright?" he asked. She looked up at him, her face reflected back at him, and smiled a little more and nodded.

"Yeah, I just got nicked I think," she said, looking down at the right side of her chest where there was a small trickle of blood dripping into the snow and ice. Taking a closer look, he guessed that it was a small piece of shrapnel that had managed to find it's way under her arm and in through the thinner layer of armor weave that gave them maximum flexibility. Normally it wouldn't have been any concern but as her chest rose and fell he could see small bubbles forming around the wound which indicated that her lung had been punctured. Quickly inserting the nozzle of a can of BioFoam into the wound, he injected a small amount of foam in as Katana hissed from the sudden pain. Pulling it back out, he stuck the canister back in his bag and helped her to her feet. Dagger had been standing to the side as all of this was happening and moved in when Luke had finished.

"What's our plan of attack? The Warthog is done for and I don't know if any of those civvie cars could handle our weight." Luke scanned the broken Warthog and the Banshee, his eyes glancing over the twisted corpse of the Brute before looking up towards the toll booths on the shoreline. He could see a few faint wisps of smoke travelling up into the air which caught his attention.

"Let's check that out," he said.

The going was a little slower than he had hoped but they eventually made it up to the tollbooths and could see the source of the smoke. A Covenant check point had been set up on the highway but after quickly diving for cover they could see that it had been almost completely destroyed in a fight. Still taking cover behind one of the booths, he continued to scan with his built in binoculars to see if there were any Covenant moving around.

"_Did the Marines ever maker it over here or did they just push their way through?_" Dagger asked as he looked out at the wreckage.

"I'm not sure. Those are some sizable blast marks and lots of wrecked armor but there wasn't anything back at their position that could've done this," Luke replied back, cautious and confused. Continuing to recon the area he didn't see any bullet holes or shell casings that would've been a telltale sign of Marines operating in the area. All he could see, however, were plasma burns on melted metal and spikes lodged in different things. "Cover me; I'm going to take a look." Luke kept his rifle ready and came out from behind cover of the tollbooth. His eyes danced around between the various cars as well as his motion tracker as he emerged from the complex and out into the open road that had been cleared away from the checkpoint. Blown out Ghosts were scattered around and the Covenant's supply crates and communications stations were destroyed or thrown about, dead Elites and Brutes around them as if they were being used as cover. The mobile platforms that they deployed for snipers or to serve as observation posts lay in heaps at the bottom of their gravity lifts and the barricades and energy shields that they had set up were torn apart or barely working. Off to his left near a weapons crate he spotted an Elite who was riddled with spikes. With his rifle ready to fire he approached the Elite and inspected the wounds. His right arm had a spike lodged through the wrist and up the arm and another was lodged into the shoulder at an odd angle. Two more were in it's legs and a fifth was through the neck. But clustered in it's chest were about eight spikes all from a downward angle and Luke guessed that the Elite had been executed.

"_What is it_?" Dagger asked as Luke remained hunched over the corpse. He didn't respond but looked around more and could see a Brute's corpse in the snow and moved over towards it. Huge patches of fur had been burned away and distinct plasma burns covered it's body.

"I think they fought each other." Nobody said anything as he continued to move through the bodies and inspected the wounds, a clear pattern emerging. The Elites were killed by Brute weapons and the Brutes were killed by Elite weaponry. "What happened here…?" he asked himself as he squatted down near an Elite that had a number of spikes in it's chest and was lying down next to one of their portable barriers.

"Human…" it said all of the sudden, weakly. Luke jumped back and was about to fire when he saw the Elite weakly reach out not to a weapon but towards him. Blood began to drip from between it's mandibles and it's eyes were glazed over. "Human…listen…traitors…" it said in broken English.

"I've heard that one before," he hissed back bitterly, familiar with the insults that the Covenant were so fond of slinging at them on the battlefield. He was again about to shoot but he stopped when the Elite spoke again.

"No…Jiralhanae…traitors…Prophets…traitors…Separatists coming…"

"What? The who and Prophets are traitors? Why?" he said, coming a step closer. The Elite was obviously near death but it seemed bound and determined to get it's message across and Luke was now willing to listen. "Slowly." The Elite took a breath and collected itself, seemingly ready to make one final push.

"Our religion is false…Prophets lied. Honorable Sangheili are coming…to help…Humans." The Elite coughed up a large amount of blood and tried to say something else but nothing would come from his mandibles and he gave one final sigh and died.

"_The Jiralhanae is what the Brutes call themselves. It sounds as if the Brutes and Elites have split with each other and the Brutes have aligned themselves with the Prophets. Give me a moment to scan the networks for anything related to_…"

"What is it Nathan?" Luke asked as he stood back up and motioned for his squad to join him.

"_That combination of terms is being listed as classified by ONI Section Three_."

"They know what's going on then?"

"_It would seem that way. But the bigger question is where does the break end? Is this merely an uprising by the Elites or is the Covenant breaking itself apart along racial or religious lines?_"

"No offense Nathan but it's irrelevant at the moment. Our mission is to get to D.C. and assist in the defense of the city. Once that's completed we can talk about the Covenant and what they're doing." Despite brushing it off towards Nathan, Luke was intrigued by this development and was slow to walk away from the Elite. He wasn't sure he could ever trust a species that had been hell-bent on eradicating him but they didn't need to trust each other, they just needed to work together long enough for both sides to get out of this in one piece. He turned his mind back towards the task at hand and began to scour the wreckage for something that they could use to get to D.C. quickly. Off to the side of the road he spotted an overturned Shadow that seemed to be relatively undamaged. "Let's get that Shadow upright and see if it's still operating."

"_Roger_," Dagger replied and the three of them jogged through the snow towards it. The armored troop transport rolled over easily and the turret that sat above the bulbous appeared undamaged. Nothing was positioned between the two pylons that were connected by thin roof bar but there were two small barriers behind the main gun that gave them enough room to take cover from any incoming fire.

"I'll drive this time," Luke said with a hint of amusement in his voice. Dagger nodded and in one swift motion grabbed onto the top of the Shadow and hopped into the gunner seat. Before Luke took the wheel he waited for Katana to do the same. Once they were both up he got into the cockpit and settled into the oddly designed driver's seat. Taking a hold of the two joysticks, the main screen in front of him illuminated a purple and pink line drawing of the terrain in front of him. It took a moment to get used to the look but his mind adapted quickly and he began to maneuver the machine away from the checkpoint. It hummed quietly as the hovered about a foot off the ground and he began to navigate his way through the crowded highway towards Annapolis and then to D.C.


	44. Outskirts

"Outskirts"

Luke turned off the Shadow and stopped it on the side of the road, barren trees leaning over the highway from a small strip of land that had remained undeveloped. All around them buildings soared into the sky and got taller as they got closer to D.C. before they dropped off and the old city and it's monuments remained untouched. He ventured away from the Shadow and got a better view of the gleaming silver buildings standing almost completely empty, some of them damage from the battle. Off in the distance he could see tall columns of smoke rising into the air that turned the sky a dull gray color, mixing with the first edges of the front moving in from the West.

"_What are you looking at soldier_?"

"Just getting a look at the area. Doesn't look like there was much fighting in this area though."

"_That's correct. I'm monitoring communications at the moment and currently the Covenant are in the Western and Southern portions of the city but there are pockets of both sides inside the city itself_."

"Find me the nearest command post, I want to get coordinated and in this fight as soon as possible," he said as he walked back to the Shadow.

"See anything interesting?" Dagger called down to him. Luke grunted a no and sent the Shadow forward as a waypoint appeared on his HUD. Only a few miles up was a junction between I-495 and US 50 which gave the UNSC access to the Beltway and let them get to other portions of the city quickly. He continued to get closer to the command post but then stopped when they were about a mile away in case the defensive units picked them up. Setting out on foot, they jogged through the iced over snow which didn't pose any sort of problem for the armor that broke right through the crust and down to the road surface. Off in the distance he could see the UNSC command post covered with white netting to hide them from the Covenant air force that would be operating in the area. Set up on a large parking lot on the top of a garage there were a number of large radio tower clusters as well as a couple smaller portable buildings clustered around a single larger one. The buildings were even taller than before and made a solid corridor around the road that continued to wind into the city, a few hollow blasts quietly rumbling towards them. All around the building which was nestled right up next to the freeway were troops either stationed to protect the command post or who were being prepared to leave. Portable barriers had been set up everywhere and machine guns were posted in all different directions, backed up by Warthogs and a few Scorpions whose turrets were perpetually scanning the horizon for threats. AA turrets were also set up around the building ensuring that if the Covenant attacked they'd have a fight on their hands. As Luke and his squad approached he waved his hand in a friendly gesture just in case their IFF wasn't working for some reason and received a few waves back.

"_Identify yourself_," a voice cut in.

"Lieutenant Sword, codenamed Fury One." There were a few seconds of silence as the Marine checked his credentials. He scanned the dark figures 50 yards away from him and guessed who he was speaking to when he saw a number of Marines near a cluster of barriers and a machine gun nest on the main off ramp that led to the garage. He was hunched over a small monitor and then looked up.

"_Identify confirmed, sir. Welcome to command and control_."

"Thank you," Luke replied and they quickly closed the distance to the Marines and quickly exchanged salutes. Like the Marines they had met earlier, these were dressed in multiple layers from the biting cold, their faces covered and their goggles down over their eyes.

"Sir, if you just head down this ramp you'll see the entrance to the parking garage. All of the levels are currently being used but you'll want to head to the top floor where command has set up." He nodded and Luke led his squad down the ramp towards the parking garage. More troops were stationed outside and he could see that more of the portable buildings had been set up inside of the parking garage as well as piles of gear. They reached the entrance and were waved through as they stepped into the garage. On the bottom floor Warthogs and Mongooses were parked in neat rows with ammo crates and small collections of equipment that they were taking with them when they were sent out. Moving up to the second floor they waded through ammo crates and other munitions that were waiting to be cracked open and passed around to the troops in need. Two more floors of ammo went by before they were on top level where the command center had been established. Thick cables were running through the snow between the antennas and the various buildings, all seeming to originate from the central structure. A few Marines were posted outside as guards and they waved Luke in after he had his squad wait for him outside. The door was set up in an airlock style and once the first one was closed he opened the second up revealing a vaulted interior that was only illuminated by the blue glow of the rows and rows of monitor that were on either side of a clear walkway in the center of the building. Each one was manned by a technician, about eighty total, who was quickly relaying information and giving new orders to squads as command reacted to the changing situations. At the far end of the structure on a small raised section was an enormous holographic table that was displaying the D.C. area with the different sections colored according to who was controlling the sector. A number of high ranking officers were huddled around it and technicians and assistants were constantly stepping up and getting new information to pass down the chain of command. After taking a second to take in everything Luke made his way to the commanding officers, vaguely aware of the techs stopping what they were doing and looking up at the super soldier. When he reached the dais he stopped and saluted as all of the officers turned and looked at him for a second.

"I didn't think you were coming after what happened to the _Kamiak_." The man who spoke had three silver stars on his uniform, a Lieutenant General, and heavy bags under his eyes which complimented the shallow wrinkles and graying hair. Luke's eyes flashed to his badge and saw "McQuade" printed in white lettering on the black plaque on his chest, next to the solid wall of ribbons and awards.

"We barely made it out, sir," Luke replied back, all of the officers staring into his mirrored visor that was distorting everything it was reflecting. "I have two more of my squad with me. Our pilot was the only other person that I know made it off the ship alive but he was killed when we were coming to the surface."

"Three is better than nothing Lieutenant. The Covenant have brought a CCS-class cruiser down near Alexandria and troops are pouring out of that thing and into Arlington. Right now the line is holding at the Potomac River near Georgetown but intel is suggesting that a Scarab may be on it's way to smash through the line and we can't let that happen." McQuade zoomed the map in on the Georgetown area and the shoreline that connected to Arlington and brought up a more detailed view of the units engaged in the fight. The small figures moved on the screen but Luke couldn't tell if they were actually fighting or if they were just maneuvering for the battle that was sure to come. The General then brought the screen back out to it's original zoom and Luke was able to get a better idea of the situation. Judging by the red hue that covered most of the towers that surrounded D.C., the Covenant had pushed back the UNSC forces back pretty far but they'd managed to dig their heels in and prevent them from going any further. The lone holdout was Andrews Air Force Base to the South of the city which was still glowing green. He knew it was crucial that the base remain in UNSC control so that they could continue bringing in close air support and supplies but there was no way to tell how long before it got overrun.

"We can do whatever you need to keep that line secured, sir," Luke replied.

"I know you will. I want you to link up with Lieutenant Meyers. He's commanding a platoon of ODSTs that have been giving the Covenant a helluva time trying to cross the river." Luke instantly recognized the name.

"My squad and I have operated with the Lieutenant on a mission previously. He's a great soldier." The General only nodded.

"Get out there and stop the Covenant from taking this city. Or if they do take the city, take as many with you as you can."

"Yes sir," Luke responded and was about to salute when something came into his head. "May I ask a question, sir?"

"Yes." He hesitated for a second and then took a step forward so that he could keep his voice as low as possible.

"Is there some sort of shakeup within the Covenant? I came across-."

"You're dismissed Lieutenant," McQuade said quickly, stopping him in his tracks. Luke snapped off a salute and stepped away from the holographic table and began to make his way out of the building.

"_That's quite interesting_," Nathan said. "_Top commanders are obviously aware of the internal politics of the Covenant but it's still classified material. I would suggest you keep this to yourself from here on out since we have no way of knowing who is and isn't in the loop_."

"I agree." Stepping back into the freezing air he took a few steps over to Dagger and Katana who were waiting patiently for him.

"What's the word?" Dagger asked, unfolding his arms as his right hand unconsciously dropped down towards his pistol where it rested.

"We're meeting up with Lieutenant Meyers, one of the ODSTs we were with on Loki. Looks like he was promoted to Bennett's position."

"Good for him," Dagger said with a hint of sarcasm and disinterest in his voice, a sign that he was getting a little anxious about something. Luke glanced out towards the city and could see that the clouds had moved in even closer and more smoke was billowing up into the sky. Things were getting worse.

"The Covenant landed one of their ships and it's troops are moving in from the West, across the river. We've got a possible Scarab joining in on the fun and we're going there to make sure that line holds against the incoming assault."

"I've been hearing planes off in the distance; do we still have birds in the sky?" Katana asked.

"For the moment, yes. The air base is still standing but that could fall at any minute if the Covenant get tired of us flying around." Luke shrugged his shoulders a little as he said this. "How's ammo looking?"

"I've got some space to toss in a few mags on the way out but other than that I'm good," Dagger replied.

"Same," Katana said, patting a few empty pouches on her vest.

"Alright. Let's gear up and get on our way, I'll see if one of those Warthogs is available so we don't have to run all the way out there." Two acknowledgment lights popped up on his HUD and they walked down to the lower levels of the garage. Luke had the other two grab him a few spare magazines while he went down a level and found the Marine in charge of the motor pool. It didn't take any effort for him to get a Warthog and he sat waiting in the driver's seat for Katana and Dagger to come down. Dagger took the gunner's position and Katana hopped into the seat next to him and shifted back and forth for a few seconds, trying to find a comfortable position for her armor and all the gear strapped to her. "Let's head out," he said and drove the Warthog out of the garage and back up onto the freeway. Nathan dropped a waypoint on the far side of the city for him and he set off to link up with Lieutenant Meyers.


	45. Look Happy, It's the End of the World

"Look Happy, It's the End of the World…"

Luke couldn't shake the uneasiness that he felt as they drove through the nearly deserted city. The citizens had fled long before the Covenant landed in force and almost all of the Marines were deployed on the fringes leaving the inner areas dead and quiet, save for the hollow explosions that rumbled through the air off in the distance. The Superintendent-class AI was still operational in the city and up ahead on the road Luke saw an Oliphant navigating the narrow streets as it cleared the streets of snow and any trash that made its way to the ground. Checking his map real quick, Luke could see that they were only a few blocks away from the river and were already in the narrow streets of Georgetown, the buildings still in the original design but heavily renovated and restored over all the centuries. Over the tops of the squat buildings in Georgetown were the glimmering towers of Arlington on the other side of the Potomac. The thickening cloud layer was beginning to obscure their tops but he could still see the enormous buildings stretching up into the sky, a Phantom threading its way around them deeper inside.

"Imposing," Katana said as they continued down the road towards a cluster of Marines on the end of a road that intersected with another that followed the river from a raised deck. Further down there was the remnants of another bridge that had already been blown out along with a few others further down the wandering river that was now almost solid ice. With the bridges blow the only way the Covenant had to get across was to either move further down the river to a larger cluster of Marines where the shallow banks would let them get up, or they could leave their armor on the far side and move across the open river after jumping down the sides only to fight back up into Georgetown. Luke wasn't sure if either option was better since the Covenant would hit hard wherever they decided to make their move but from a tactical point of view, they had the advantage at Georgetown. Reaching the end of their road, he parked the Warthog out of the way and looked around for Lieutenant Meyers. Most of the soldiers were Marines who were taking cover behind the metal barriers on the river side of the road, machine guns sitting hidden on the ground and ammo stations placed strategically to keep everyone loaded up. Snipers and their spotters were positioned on or in the buildings with more machine gun nests waiting to open up. Luke was even able to spot a few Scorpions tucked away in the narrow back streets, ready to leap into action the minute the Covenant attacked. Continuing to scan the soldiers he spotted the distinct black and gray ODSTs camped out near a machine gun. He headed over there and one of them noticed him and jumped to attention. Underneath their armor and behind the mask Luke had no idea of whom this man was but he saw Meyers' unit's patch on his uniform and guessed he might've served with him on Loki. Luke also couldn't help but notice the reversal of roles since he and his fellow Tempests were just as indistinguishable under their armor but Luke wouldn't have any trouble picking out who was who in an instant.

"Sir!" the ODST said as his fellow squad mates spun around and jumped to attention.

"At ease. I'm looking for Lieutenant Meyers," Luke replied back.

"Uh, he came by here about ten minutes ago. I think he was heading back to the rest of the platoon two blocks over but I don't know for sure. I'm sorry sir." The ODST's voice sounded young and a little nervous, unlike the normally grizzled veterans that most ODSTs proved to be. At this point in the war the ones that were left standing were the best, the new guys had to get with the program fast or they'd wind up dead. Luke nodded and thanked him as they walked the two blocks to where the platoon was waiting. He tried not to steal glances across the river at the Covenant but he couldn't help himself as he looked over quickly and could see shadows of movement. Luke dropped his head almost instantly and couldn't will himself to look across the river. Images flashed in his mind of the city burning and the Covenant swarming through it. His right hand tensed quickly and he could feel a tingling in his head around the conductors on his brain and he could see the status monitors for his squad change to yellow as their information became erratic. A moment later he heard Katana grunt over their team channel. Turning around, he could see her hand on her helmet as she moved it around a little.

"Something wrong?" he asked, the tingling subsiding.

"_I'm fine, just had a really bad headache for a second there_."

"_Yeah, same_," Dagger said.

"_Your stress levels are elevated soldier, is there something wrong_?" Nathan asked.

"I'm fine," Luke shot back tersely, remembering the incident before and knowing that he had to control his emotions. Suddenly having a psychic meltdown in front of all the soldiers would kill morale and he couldn't let that happen. He tried to turn his mind away from the images of the city burning that he came up with, thinking of Katana and his home and for some reason an Evergreen forest and it worked, the images of the city burning slowly subsiding but he was still unsettled and off-balance. It didn't take long for him to realize what was causing this sudden wave of fear; the fact that there was nowhere else to run. In ever battle he fought, he knew that there was always another place to make a stand or if he died fighting the Covenant he did all that he could do to prevent them from getting to Earth. But now there was nowhere to run after all was said and done. Of course there were other planets they could go to but by then the battle was lost and the only thing left was to decide if you got the honor of being the last member of an all but extinct species. It was more than an unsettling thought and it was shaking his very being apart. But as he walked up to the cluster of ODSTs with Meyers standing in the middle of them as the rest of his men looked on at him another thought entered his mind. With nothing left to lose he would fight as savagely as he'd ever fought. Maybe there would be no more Humans to remember his name or what he'd done (not that he was searching for glory) but the next best thing was the thought of the Covenant talking about how ferocious the Tempests, Spartans, ODSTs, and other Marines were in their last hours. Standing away from the group, Meyers noticed the super soldiers and gave them a nod which Luke returned, the Lieutenant continuing to address his squad in a low volume. He had his helmet off, his black hair cut short but spike from sweat and bald spots from scars. His slightly oversized ears stuck out away from his thin frame but Luke had seen what he was capable of and new that even though he wasn't the biggest ODST he'd seen, he was one of the toughest and that was all that counted. He slipped his helmet on and walked over to Luke who was standing motionless near a lamp post.

"Command radioed ahead and said you were coming. We could sure use the extra help," he said, extending his hand. Luke shook it, barely squeezing but noticing the Lieutenant flex his hand a few times after releasing.

"The Covenant must be preparing something big. They let us reestablish a line of defense with almost a hundred yards of open ground to cover. Even for them it'll be a shooting gallery."

"I don't think they care at this point. They could lose a million men in a battle day and still have more than enough to pound us." Luke nodded in agreement but didn't speak. Meyers seemed to sense this and kept going. "I'm spreading my men out along the line to try and provide some stability throughout. Most of those Marines look pretty green and it won't do us any good if one part holds if the rest break around us."

"We heard rumors of a Scarab out there," Luke said, changing the subject.

"Yeah, we heard that one too but so far not much else. Some intel officer is insisting that the streets are too narrow for them to maneuver but if it crosses the river then there's not much stopping it on this side. The commander in charge of this area was able to get some Scorpions so if one does come across we've got some firepower to bring to bear against it."

"I saw them." Luke looked around at what else there was but he could tell that they were stretched thin and what he was looking at was about all they had. "Where do you think they'll hit the hardest?" Meyers bobbed his head back and forth as he contemplated the question.

"We've seen some armor lining up almost directly across from us, near where the bridge was blown. Not sure if they'll be able to cross it but I get a feeling that's where they're going to try and make their move."

"Dagger and I will take up position there then. Katana, I want you to get a sniper up on one of these buildings and give us some better eyes then what we have down here." She flashed an acknowledgment light and went in search of an armory.

"I'll be nearby then. The command post is another three blocks over, on the other side of that bridge and the Colonel wants me nearby so that I can relay orders quickly if communications break down."

"Sounds good," Luke replied as Meyers jogged off towards the command post.

* * *

Luke shifted to try and get more comfortable after squatting in the snow since he arrived at the line. He was beginning to feel anxious due to the lack of action but on the outside he remained almost motionless while staying hunched up against the metal barrier, his back to the Covenant across the river. Darkness had fallen quickly but that was because of being deep in winter and his mission clock said that it was only seven in the evening. Dagger was a few feet away from him, some nervous and cold Marines separating the two who had only spoken a few words since they found the spot that they'd hold. It gave them a great look across the river at an open area on the other side of the bridge that was slowly filling with Covenant equipment. It seemed as if any intentions the Covenant had on being stealthy were being thrown out the window in favor of a battle of sheer strength. An eerie glow had fallen over the entire area as the cloud layer continued to drop lower and the lights in and on the buildings illuminated them in a red color. The storm front that they'd seen earlier had finally reached the city and the temperature had plummeted to near zero and also brought with it heavy snow fall of thick flakes that quickly accumulated and also served a double purpose of obscuring their vision beyond the river. Luke was surprised at how heavy the snow was falling when he moved a fraction and a pile of it sloughed off of his armor and fell to the ground. He felt a little guilty as he sat in his climate controlled suit while the Marines next to him shivered and moved around to try and keep warm despite the gear and the small heating elements that their winter uniforms had. The light breeze was probably pushing the wind chill below zero and no matter what they were wearing it was impossible not to be cold. Luke also knew that the minute the battle started they'd forget the temperature instantly.

"_Movement_," Katana said into his ear quietly as if the Covenant could hear her. It was the first time that she'd mentioned the movements of the Covenant and so Luke spun on his heels and looked across the river. Jackals were hopping around the road, their glowing monocles giving away their position as it bobbed up and down while darting to a new location.

"Snipers?"

"_Negative. I'm seeing Carbines only_."

"Scan those buildings, they can get pretty high up on us and if they have enough snipers they can shred us," he replied and flicked over to thermal to get a better look. The snowflakes were getting in the way of his view but the heat of the jackals stood out well enough that he could see all of them despite the obstacles. He began scanning the windows of the buildings slowly, looking for any sign of something hiding out but he couldn't catch a glimpse. Frustrated, he kept scanning but the sheer amount of places a sniper could perch made it almost impossible. Just as he was about to turn off thermal he spotted a small orange blip high up on a building and instantly marked it for Katana. "There was something there."

"_Copy that_." A few tense moments passed as he watched the small spot of heat move slightly in one of the closest buildings but even with his zoom there was no way for him to get a better picture. All of the sudden a Jackal's body toppled out of the window and plummeted towards the ground. Expecting a booming shot from her rifle, he looked around and could just barely see the remnants of the contrail that the bullet left before it disappeared. "_Got him_," she radioed.

"I saw. Do you have a suppressor attached?"

"_Yeah. I found a few boxed up with the rifle so I grabbed one so I could fire without drawing too much attention_."

"Good idea," Luke replied but he was about to continue speaking only to be stopped when a purple beam of plasma cut through the air in front of him, singing the face of a Marine but nothing else. "Sniper!" he yelled and everyone instinctively dropped for cover as purple beams of energy cut through the air and burned away snow on the road. Luke squeezed up against the wall while the Marines were snapping back to attention after hours of lethargy.

"Where is it coming from!?" Dagger called out to Luke who was looking over his left shoulder down the line and out towards the buildings. He watched the Beam Rifle shots snap through the air and tried to follow them to their source but the almost infinite number of windows made it nearly impossible to figure out where the sniper was perched. Katana didn't seem to have as much trouble, however, and he heard her now unsuppressed sniper crack through the air towards the buildings or across the street at any exposed Covenant.

"I'm not sure," Luke finally responded and he poked his head up over the wall just enough to see all of the buildings but he dropped back down when a sniper shot slammed into the top of the wall just in front of him and splashed his visor with freshly melted snow. To make the situation worse the Covenant on the other side of the river began firing at them, filling the air with errant plasma while the snipers waited for someone to appear. Luke cursed in his head as he shimmied across the wall right next to Dagger.

"Those snipers are going to tear us apart," Dagger said.

"I know." He looked up at Katana's position in some vain hope that she was looking down at him. "Katana, I'm going to try and get their attention. You return the favor." Activating his camo Luke ran across the street in a low crouch towards a crate after spotting one that should've been filled with pieces of armor. Opening it up without disturbing the ones around him, he found a helmet and proceeded to toss it across the street to Dagger before coming back. Now that he was back against the wall he put the helmet on top of his fist and slowly raised it up towards the lip of wall so that it was visible over the top. Dagger had taken his fiber optic cable out and was resting it on top of the ice and snow so that he could see everything around him while he waited with his rifle ready. Luke pushed the helmet up further and a split second later the shot from a Beam Rifle slammed into the handrail about a quarter of an inch away from the helmet. Dropping it back to the ground, Katana's rifle cracked through the air and they waited for a few seconds for her to call it out.

"_Target down_," she said calmly.

"How many do you estimate are still out there?" Luke asked as he crawled down the line to raise the helmet up again.

"_Judging by the amount of fire from earlier there's most likely three or four left out there_."

"Ok, get ready for another chance." Luke popped the helmet up again and this time he felt a solid thud against the top as the rifle's shot cut through the very top of the helmet and melted a portion of the metal. Katana answered with two shots of her own and she reported that two more snipers were down. He was about to move to a new position when she cut back in over the radio.

"_Sword, we've got bigger issues. The Covenant are massing near the bridge and it looks like they may be trying to deploy something to get over it._" Moving near a small pillar in the wall he stood up just a little bit and was able to get a good look at the edge of the bridge and could see Jackals taking up positions to protect engineering Grunts as they brought out shield projectors near the edge where the bridge had been blown out. Gunfire started to erupt down near the bridge and some of the Jackals fell to the ground dead, their shields erupting in a bright flash. More troops appeared from the streets and buildings on the other side of the river and it was clear that the main assault was beginning. Katana spotted the remaining two snipers as they tried to take out Marines firing on bridge but Luke was still hesitant for a bit to completely expose himself for fear of more snipers laying low until the pressure was off of them but after a couple of minutes he didn't feel like he needed to be pressed up so tightly against cover. Moving back to Dagger his portion of the line joined in on the fight as plasma began to fly in their direction from a squad of Grunts and Jackals mixed with a handful of Brutes. Luke fired off controlled bursts at the exposed Grunts, their fluorescent blood spraying into the air. He could only a few shots off before the Covenant would direct their fire at him and he had to duck back for cover to avoid a hail of plasma and glowing spikes.

"Keep some fire on that bridge, don't let them get set up!" he called out to the Marines and a Sergeant ordered a couple of his men to concentrate their fire on the flanks of the engineers as they set the equipment out. Grabbing a grenade from his vest he primed it and then threw it with his full strength and watched the orb go flying through the air before landing at the feet of a group of Jackals at the corner closest to them before it exploded. The orange explosion enveloped them but three of the group remained standing while the others were killed either by shrapnel or the pressure wave that broke their bodies. The amount of fire continued to pick up as more and more Covenant troops took up position on the lines across the river and the Marines stood up to meet them. Machine guns that had been set up now came to life as their 7.62mm rounds shredded the ice covered stone, the gunners dropping to the ground as plasma swarmed at them while a few kept one hand on the trigger to fire blindly. A rocket leapt from it's tube and streaked across the river before exploding against the chest of a Brute that was standing exposed near the wall, the splash damage taking out a solid group near him. The Covenant returned the favor as a cluster of green blobs fired from a Fuel Rod Gun sailed across the open space and exploded on their lines. Luke could hear Marines crying out in pain and he looked over to see that only one had found it's mark, incinerating an entire squad in an instant. A few more soldiers around the blast radius rolled in agony as they grabbed stumps that were spewing blood or trying to hold their bodies together while they waited for a medic to come and ease their pain. Looking away he focused on the Covenant troops that kept appearing on the other side. To him it seemed like for every one that he ended up killing, two more would come and replace them.

"Lieutenant Meyers!" Luke called out over the radio and waited a few seconds before he replied.

"_This is Meyers, what can I do Sword?_" he asked, oddly collected considering the amount of gunfire that was filling the air around him and the explosions that kept cutting through the microphone.

"What's the status on potential air support? We've got a large grouping of Covenant infantry down here."

"_I'll check, standby_." Luke wasn't expecting much and he shifted his focus to harassing the Covenant troops that were on the bridge to prevent them from setting anything up. Unfortunately, despite their efforts a number of shields had already been set up and the rest were about to be deployed. "_Negative on the air support, they're engaged elsewhere at the moment._" Luke's mouth twitched in a moment of frustration but he pushed the issue aside and tried in vain to keep the Grunt engineers from activating the shields but he watched as a flash of blue erupted from the ground and filled the air around edge of the bridge, creating a protective cocoon that allowed the Covenant troops to move about with impunity. It was no use trying to get a lucky shot through the tiny gaps in the shields so Luke focused his back towards the troops on the other side of the river. More and more Brutes were appearing in the ranks suggesting that the Covenant were hoping to use the Grunts and Jackals as a meat shield in an attempt to wear down the Humans, a tactic that wasn't knew. Most wore the standard variations of blue armor that the common infantry wore but a few had dark purple armor and even fewer wore distinctive gold armor. Luke couldn't help but notice the increased amount of Brute shot rounds flying their direction as the stone walls and buildings behind them crumbled away piece by piece.

"Keep your fire on the Brutes, they're the main threat!" Luke called out and the Marines responded by shifting the volley of fire towards the ape-like creatures. Blue shields flared up as they were struck by the incoming rounds before they flared up and blew away, exposing the Brutes who fell to the ground with their bodies full of bullets. The Brutes returned in kind by filling the air with glowing orange spikes and grenades from their Brute Shots forced everyone to take cover for fear of being impaled. Down the line from Luke one of the machine gunners turned his sights towards the Covenant troops there and began to eat away at their cover but this led to an onslaught of plasma and spikes that quickly killed him and render the weapon useless. Luke spotted an exposed Brute pack moving down the line and hopped up to fire at them but stopped after squeezing off a few bursts when he felt a sharp pain in his left shoulder and could feel his bag jerking around while his shields flared up. Dropping back to the ground he looked over at his pauldron and saw a spike lodged into the metal plating, still glowing orange as it cooled quickly in the frozen air. Yanking it out he felt another jolt of pain and examined the wound, seeing that it had punctured the armor and his undersuit but only burned penetrated a little bit and mainly burning his skin. A quick check of his backpack revealed that the spikes sailed straight through leaving to scorched holes near the top.

"_Hey, are you alright_?" Dagger asked as he moved closer to Luke after seeing him go to the ground.

"Yeah, just a little burn, that's it." Dagger flashed a thumbs up and moved back to his position to continue fighting.

"Jumpers!" a Marine yelled out and Luke looked over to see a large pack of Brutes running towards the wall, their distinctive jumpjet packs sitting on their backs. Once they reached the edge of their side the powerful motors kicked in and bright streams of blue plasma roared out the vents and propelled the Brutes up into the air as they started firing wildly down into the Marines. Most of them were carrying two Spikers with a Carbine strapped to their lowe back. As they sailed across the Marines opened fire on the exposed Brutes but they were flying across the river too quickly and only two of the twenty Brutes in the pack fell. A quick glance down the lines showed that other packs were making the jump as well.

"Close quarters! Get ready and watch the crossfire!" Luke ordered as he stepped back from the wall, ready to engage the Brutes as they landed. Picking one clad in red armor he dodged a stream of spikes and then landed a punch squarely in the chest of the Brute and threw him into the snow. It recovered almost instantly and tossed the spent Spikers to the side and pulled out his Carbine from his back and started firing one handed. The Marines that were around Luke had already split off into smaller groups focused on taking down the other Brutes that had landed leaving the two in a duel with each other. Avoiding his shots Luke managed to squeeze off two bursts of his own which slammed into it's chest. The alien roared in either disgust or anger and charged at Luke and pounded it's fists into the icy road but missed his target by a split second as Luke rolled out of his way. Continuing the roll up onto his feet Luke pulled his combat knife out and in one swift motion lodged it in the neck of the Brute before it could reorient itself from the failed fist pound. Purple blood instantly began to surge out of the hole as Luke withdrew the blade hoping to get another stab in but the infuriated Brute swept his tree trunk arms into Luke's gut and slammed him to the ground. As Luke slid across the ice into the wall the Brute felt the wound, it's hand covered in blood as it looked at the paws and he roared loudly before grabbing a spike grenade and hurling it at him. Pressing his body tight to the ground the grenade sailed over him and lodged itself into the wall at an odd angle before exploding, sending a wall of spikes high up into the air. Luke grabbed his rifle as he scrambled back to his feet and fired off more shots that found their mark on the Brute's shields. Running it in circles he came in at it just as the Brute tried to swing it's Carbine at Luke's head. He saw this coming and leaned to the right to avoid the blow before quickly wrapping his left arm around the Brute and then pulling himself in tight, getting two hard elbow jabs into it's head. A powerful blow knocked the wind out of him as it's fists repeatedly pummeled his side, his ribs breaking one by one. Coughing up blood onto his visor he got his arm around the Brute's neck and leveraged it to the ground, keeping a finger in the wound to cause as much pain as possible followed by a solid blow against the stone ground. More blood came up as he quickly pulled his pistol out and jammed it into the Brute's mouth and fired off an entire clip into it. Blood and other chunks of the Brute sprayed across the ground and up onto Luke's visor which further obscured his visor.

"_I'm detecting multiple fractures throughout your torso and serious internal bruising and bleeding,_" Nathan reported, his giving away his anxiety.

"I know," Luke said as he stood up and began to stalk towards another Brute that was giving the Marines a hard time. Already bleeding wounded he was firing wildly at them and they weren't able to move in for the kill. Luke waited for it's back to be turned to him and then charged in and took a hold of it's head and shoulders and twisted the Brute's head so hard and fast that the look of surprise was still on his face as it turned around to look at Luke. Wheezing from the blood in his lungs he continued to fire on the remaining Brutes while also getting an idea of the casualties that they had sustained. "Dagger how are you doing?"

"_One piece sir_," he replied quickly, a grunt coming through before the closing the channel. The rest of the Brutes had been brought down by the Marines but they sustained heavy casualties in the process, an even mix of wounded and dead. Further down the line they were cleaning up their assaulters but the rest of the Covenant assault group began to make their move. Behind the protective shell at the edge of the shield a new device was set up that came to life as Luke looked past it down the rest of the line. A bridge of blue light extended across the gap to the side the Marines were on and from within the dome a solid phalanx of Jackals began to walk across the bridge, their shields deflecting the bullets perfectly in all different directions. Behind them were two packs of Brutes numbering over fifty and all crouched low and with weapons at the ready.

"_Sword, there's a Chieftain in that pack!_" Katana called out and he turned to face her as she jumped to her feet and got a better angle on them. Luke knew that he needed to warn Meyers.

"Lieutenant Meyers! I just got word that there's a Chieftain in that group that is moving towards you so be ready!"

"_Thanks for the heads up, we'll take care of him_." The battle at the bridge began to pick up in intensity as the Jackals pushed forward slowly while the Brutes followed behind them, waiting till the perfect moment to strike. Continuing to try and thin the lines on the other side, Luke stopped when he saw the hunchbacked silhouettes of Wraiths floating through the heavy mist, the blue lights all along their hulls and guns glowing brightly. He didn't say anything because the Marines around him spotted the tanks as well and were beginning to grow panicked.

"Nathan, I need you to try and get air support on the horn and help us out or they're going to break right through."

"_I'll do my best but Andrews is being hammered and most likely won't last too much longer at the rate it's going_."

"Just make them understand," Luke replied, almost pleading his case. Looking around for something that he could use to take out the Wraiths he spotted some ammo crates stacked at the corner of a building with a number of boxes filled with SPNKr missiles. Dashing across the street to the crates he slid onto one leg and came back around them after drawing heavier fire from the other side of the river. Cracking one of the brown cases open he saw two white missiles nestled in foam. Setting it down into the snow he scanned over the yellow print on the sides of the different crates and spotted the one he wanted, opening it up and pulling out an M41 Rocket Launcher. Loading two rockets into the launcher and grabbing two more cases he made it back to the wall next to Dagger and dropped the spares to the ground.

"Trying to take the Wraiths out?" he asked, obviously already knowing the answer.

"Yeah. We can't let them blow these lines apart."

"Roger that." Bringing the tubes over the wall, Luke settled the reticule on the lead tank and pressed the trigger and waited for the HEAT missile to lock onto the tank's thermal signature. A second later the triangles rotating around the reticule stopped and flashed while a tone started to beep and Luke let go of the trigger. The missile flew out of the tube with soft woosh and arced up into the sky a little before it came back down and struck the tank near the rear where there wasn't as much armor. An orange explosion illuminated the fog followed by some smaller blue flashes as plasma sparked out and splashed to the ground. Before the tank had time to register what had happened Luke fired off a second one that went into the hole caused by the first missile and exploded inside the Wraith's main reactor. There was a delayed reaction but the Wraith suddenly leapt up higher in the air as plasma boiled underneath it and wrapped around the hull before the smoking hulk dropped to the ground and the main gun exploded in a bright purple flash of light. Some of the Marines nearby cheered when they watched this but the celebration was short lived as the Covenant tried to focus their fire on Luke to prevent him from taking out the other Wraith. And with its partner down, the second tank had turned to face the Human lines and prevent its weak rear from being exposed like it was earlier.

"_This is Avalon Nine-Three on heading one-eight-zero cherub three, danger close. Keep your heads down, it's going to be hot._" Luke smiled when he heard the drone of the pilot in his ear and looked up the river where he saw two sets of lights coming low towards them. He couldn't hear the engines from the Longswords over the roar of battle but Avalon Nine-Three suddenly screamed past followed by his wingman. A second later the night was illuminated by a bright orange wall of flame that engulfed nearly three blocks, two more explosions following down the street until almost the entire other side of the river was covered in the fire. Orange and red flames boiled up from the ground while thick black smoke billowed into the air. The heat from the fuel bombs slammed into the Marines who covered their faces as the snow and ice began to steam, their eyes shocked by the sudden light show after being in the dark for so long. A few moments of calm filled the air and the Marines began to cheer, thinking that they had won the fight but Luke remained on guard as his eyes tried to pierce through the impenetrable wall of black smoke that was pouring into the air. Over on the bridge the Covenant continued to make their slow advance forward under the withering hail of gunfire and when Luke looked back over the river the glowing lights of more Covenant troops who were ready to replace all of their fallen brethren. As the smoke continued to thin Luke looked could see something enormous pushing its way through the narrow streets, four bright lights surrounding a center gun that was glowing green and another large cannon sitting on its hunched back.

"It's a Scarab…we need to retreat now…"Luke said to no one in particular.


	46. We've Run the Simulations

"We've Run the Simulations…"

Time was slow while Luke turned towards the bridge and the soldiers defending it, the shockwave from the gravity hammer already engulfing the terrified Marines in distorted air and bright blue bolts of energy that crackled across the stone. Their screams echoed over the battle before they went silent with a gargle while their bodies were crushed and deformed. Flung through the air they slammed into the sides of buildings, shattering glass and stone before crumpling to the street. Marching triumphantly through the still smoking crater of the explosion was the Brute Chieftain in his gold and crimson armor and he quickly let out a loud roar that even made Luke unsettled. Everything seemed to be happening so slowly but an instant later and the world erupted around him but all he could do was focus on the Chieftain who remained standing while bullets bounced off his armor and his lieutenants stormed out in front of him. Looking back to his left for a moment he could see the Scarab making its way around on the far side of the river, slowly and without purpose.

"This position is lost," he said in normal tone.

"Could you repeat that, sir?" the ODST sergeant asked, pushing up closer to hear over the gunfire.

"Take everyone and retreat back to the rally point! Your only concern is these men right here," Luke yelled, sweeping his arm across the Marines and ODSTs near them. "Don't stop for anything! That's an order!"

"Yes sir!" he shot back and yelled out for everyone to move out. They quickly left their position and began to make their way back through the snow covered streets and into the darkness, away from the fighting.

"_What are we doing then_?" Dagger asked.

"Katana, ditch your position and get down here with us. No one's getting left behind," he said, ignoring Dagger for the moment.

"_Oscar mike_." Luke tapped Dagger's shoulder and pointed to the corner of the nearest building and they made their way across the street so that they were on the proper side of the fight again.

"We've got to slow down their advance or else they'll cut right through the city. At the very least we've got to knock that Scarab out before it can get to work." Dagger nodded in response, his head on a swivel while he looked for enemies. "We know where their weak spot is," he continued, referring to the exposed portion in the rear that gave access to the same worms that made up Hunters. Destroying the shield covering it and the alien cluster underneath would send the machine into a series of cascading failures resulting in its complete destruction. Luke knew it sounded a lot simpler than it would be. "The streets are narrow enough here that it'll be slow but once it gets into the open areas it'll be too fast to stop so we need to do it now."

"_Fury One, this is Major Leonard. Lieutenant Meyers informs me that you ordered your squads back to the rally point while you stayed behind_?" The radio was filled with static and gunfire but Luke could make out the voice on the other end well enough.

"Sir, I'm volunteering my squad to stay behind and slow the advance of the Covenant and in particular that Scarab." Looking down the street the Covenant had cleared out most of the remaining Marines and the battle had calmed down considerably. What was once a constant report of gunfire was now nothing more than a few sharp cracks of weapons followed by the soft booms of battles raging elsewhere in the city.

"_Negative on that Lieutenant we still need you and your squad in this fight_." Luke wasn't in the mood to argue with Major over something that he knew needed to be done. Brutes were beginning to make their way towards the corner that Luke was on and he pulled out his combat knife while flashing two fingers towards Dagger who got ready as well. The two Brutes were accompanied by a small pack of Grunts that wouldn't present a problem.

"With all due respect sir, this fight is lost the minute that Scarab gets into the city proper. We need to bring it down here, now. I believe that our lives for a dead Scarab is a fair trade off." He was met with silence as he lunged out at the Brute and plunged the blade into its chest. Instantly he had pulled it back out as blood gushed out of the wound and buried it deep into the Brute's neck. Dagger was there a split second later and got his blade into the other Brute's mouth just as it was about to roar and the severing of the spinal cord caused the Brute's eyes to roll back in different directions and in one swift motion they both pulled the bodies around the corner before there was a chance to see what had happened. The remaining Grunts were still frozen from a combination of shock and fear and were quickly dispatched.

"_You've got_ _your wish. Lieutenant Meyers has also insisted that whatever remains of his squad will meet up with you and assist you in this mission. Good luck son. Leonard out_."

"_Marker on Meyers_," Nathan said quickly.

"Thanks," Luke replied as he ducked into a crowded alley and edged closer towards the main street. Across the street an abandoned vehicle was burning from some sort of strike and suddenly it erupted in a flash of light as the fuel cell detonated and illuminated that blackened alley in blinding white light for a moment. Luke double stepped so that he didn't light up for the Covenant to see before hurrying to the edge. He tensed up for a split second as he heard the sound of movement near him but a quick check of his motion tracker signaled that it was Katana and a second later she appeared next to Dagger and Luke, her rifle stuck across her back on the magnetic plates where her backpack would normally be. She gave an almost imperceptible nod towards Luke that he didn't return but she knew he appreciated the sentiment. With his attention centered on the end of the alley he followed the blue triangle that was Meyers and his squad, the range finder indicated they were about two blocks over but those two blocks were quickly becoming filled with Covenant troops. Luke was hoping that their desire to press the advantage would make them less thorough then they normally were but that didn't mean Luke and his squad could let up. At the edge he spotted the Scarab now positioned at the far side of the bridge, prepared to cross over and begin to assault the city before the Marines were able to establish a new defensive position. Filling the streets around them were Brutes herding Grunts and Jackals forward while they almost sprinted past their position without even so much as throwing a glance in their direction. Across the street was one of the taller buildings in the area and unlike many of the shops wasn't exposed with the floor to ceiling glass that they employed, instead opting for small panes of glass to flow better with the old brick style. Continually scanning the Covenant forces as they advanced past them he was able to spot a break in their numbers that would allow them to get through if they were fast enough and luck was on their side. "Active camo, we can't be seen." A quiet hum from his armor and he blended into the surroundings but was lit up on thermal if anyone was looking. A countdown started showing how much battery it was draining and when it would start to sap the power used to keep his shields and other systems running. Waiting till the best moment he broke into a full sprint and crossed the street in a second before diving through one of the blown out windows, rolling across the wood floor and jumping to his feet. Katana and Dagger were a second behind him and he disengaged the camo while he kept his eyes focused on the front of the building, waiting for the Covenant to come in and investigate but they were none the wiser.

"_Nice move_," Dagger joked, patting Luke on the shoulder. Luke's mouth curved upwards momentarily but he let it pass and crouched towards the back of the store and past the counters. Arriving at the rear exit he stuck his fiber optic camera underneath and looked into the large alley that the stored backed up to. Seeing that it was clear at the moment he nudged the door open and began to make his way outside.

"You two stay behind and set up camp. I'm going to get the Lieutenant and bring him back here." Stepping out into the snow he began to cautiously approach the exit of the alley that emerged into one of the major cross streets.

"_I'm detecting Covenant armor setting up in the street that the Lieutenant must cross. They're waiting while the rest of the ground forces move ahead_," Nathan reported. Sure enough, at the end of the cross street Luke could see the hunchbacked frame of the rear of a Wraith with two more Ghosts parked behind it.

"How many of them are on their way here?"

"_Five, including the Lieutenant_."

"Lieutenant, this is Sword," he radioed, opening a channel with him.

"This is Meyers," he hissed back, obviously keeping his voice as quiet as possible. Before he could continue Luke spoke again.

"I know about the conditions in the street. I'm going to have to set up a distraction for you so you and your men are going to have to be ready to move the minute it happens." There was no response but he guessed that the Lieutenant understood what was going to happen and would do what he needed to do. Not happy with the position on the ground he climbed up the back of the building, sometimes having to make his own hand and foot holds by breaking through the walls and crawled across the flat roof on his stomach till he was looking down on the Covenant position. More vehicles were lined up in the streets but the Covenant troops guarding them didn't look like they were getting ready to go into battle but were instead taking a break. Scanning up and down the street he suddenly realized what it was just was Nathan spoke.

"_Oh, I seem to have been mistaken. They're not parked here to move into the city, they're being rearmed and refueled._" Luke grunted at Nathan's admitting of a mistake and thought about a new plan. Meyer's squad was about another block East of his position, waiting at a corner to make their way into the alley that he had just come from but on the other side of the cross street below him. West of his position was what appeared to be carrying the fuel which looked like one of the transports they had commandeered earlier but with a large plasma tank slung underneath of it.

"Too easy," Luke said and pulled out a suppressor for his pistol and screwed it on. He would've preferred to use his BR55 for the job but with the HE rounds and the suppressor he assumed he'd have better luck. With his arms braced in the snow he squeezed off a short burst towards the tanker and was rewarded with a blinding flash of plasma that engulfed a number of Ghosts and a nearby Wraith in white blue light. Thick black smoke poured into the sky and secondary explosions continued to go off from the residual heat of the explosion that flash melted most of the snow and left the stones and metal near it glowing bright orange. He looked back towards Meyers' squad while blinking away the burns to his retina and was relieved to see that they had made it across safely. He still remained in his position as the Covenant scrambled around, still dazed and confused from the explosion. After about thirty seconds it was obvious that he hadn't been spotted and began to make his way back from the edge to link back up with his squad. In the alley he ducked into the building where Meyers and his squad were squatting behind shelves, the darkness almost completely enveloping their black armor although Luke's enhanced vision aided by his suit allowed him to see them clear enough.

"Sword," Meyers said as he got up off the floor and extended his hand. Luke shook it and noticed that his armor was covered in a mix of Human and alien blood that had already frozen to the plates and was flaking off. There were also some noticeable pieces of physical damage to the armor which included some large burn marks and dents that suggested that Meyers was in the thick of things.

"Glad you made it but we don't have a lot of time," he responded, instinctively moving into the shadows as a cluster of Grunts waddled by in the street. "We need to drop that Scarab before it gets into the city or else we have no chance of surviving any of this." Meyers nodded while Luke spoke. "I think this building should be high enough for me to jump across and mount it's back so that I can get to the worm cluster on the back. My team and yours will need to provide covering fire for me while I'm making the jump and while I'm on board. Once that happens, Dagger and Katana will continue to follow me on the rooftops; I don't know if you and your men will be able to keep up if the Scarab is moving quickly."

"Lieutenant, we're ODSTs, keeping up won't be an issue," Meyers responded.

"Good to hear," Luke responded as he began to make his way upstairs. He had faked a laugh but behind his mask his face was stern because he knew that they would take it the worst if things went south. And despite their toughness he wasn't sure if they would be able to keep up, let alone shoot at the Covenant and keep Luke's back safe. Hurrying up the stairs he ran into Katana who looked like she was about to come back down.

"Covenant troops look like they're getting ready to cross the river and they look serious; Brute packs and lots of Grunts and Jackals in formation. This isn't some cannon fodder we ran into earlier." Going to a nearby window Luke could see that her assessment was correct. The Covenant had set up in large phalanxes of purple and blue armor, their plasma glowing in the darkness through the snow and fog. Heavily armored Brutes who were clearly high up in their clans patrolled the phalanxes with an air of confidence surrounding them, no doubt bolstered by the towering piece of machinery that was standing over them.

"Now's when we need an airstrike…" Luke muttered under his breath.

"_Andrews is almost overrun. We'll lose air superiority within the hour_," Nathan replied despondently. Luke remained emotionless as he headed up to the third story of the building and then up onto the roof. Ducking down behind an A/C unit he squatted down into the snow while the others did the same next to their own pieces of cover. He started to survey the roof to judge how much speed he would be able to get and where he would need to make the jump. Another concern began to emerge in his mind and that was of the size of the vehicle and the height of the building. He was beginning to have doubts about being high enough to reach one of the crew levels but would instead have to get onto one of the legs and climb up the joints before making his way back down. Without enemy fire he didn't think it would be too difficult but having an entire Covenant ground force shooting up at him would complicate matters. In a moment of silence he could hear a Brute roar out and was echoed by his comrades which Luke took as a sign that they were beginning to move out and he confirmed it a second later when he turned around the corner and saw the columns beginning to move across the bridge while the Scarab remained stationary although there was activity on the multiple decks. Continuing to watch the Covenant march he began to silently count their numbers but it quickly became obvious that there was a thousand or more troops preparing to move into the city from this bridge alone and there were surely more making their way in from other locations in the city.

"Where are the Marines?" Luke asked Nathan.

"_The rally points are to the South of our position now, near the outskirts of the Mall. Other positions have broken throughout the city and the Mall will be the final fallback position_."

"Ok, upload whatever data you have to command. At the very least they can be prepared if we don't stop this thing." Down below, the Covenant troops had already crossed the bridge and were moving past their position in the building. Rhythmically the Brutes marched forward, their haggard breathing pouring out clouds of white steam that rose into the air and obscured them partially. A horn sounded off in the distance and Luke snapped his head towards the source; the Scarab. Almost shaking as if it was a wet dog, the Scarab lifted itself even higher and began to move forward with its first lumbering step followed by another and another. It took only a second for the enormous machine to cross over the river and begin to bring itself back up the other side into the old part of town. Luke's heart was almost having a seizure in his chest while he watched the Scarab move forward towards them but it only took a second for him to focus and bring it back down to somewhere just about resting. He picked at the snow around him to feel the consistency and found the angle that would give him the most space to gain speed. Looking back at the Scarab its progress had slowed down a little as it tried to navigate the buildings, eventually opting to just smash the enormous spiked feet through the tops. Watching the legs he judged when and where it would hit and got up onto his feet, ready to make the jump. The rest of his comrades were waiting for him and even though he couldn't see any of their faces he could sense their tension. The moment finally came to start running.

"Magnetize," he whispered, activating the magnetic strips on his armor. Almost a blur he exploded away from the A/C unit, snow and stone exploding up behind him. The front of the Scarab passed them, its front right leg smashing through a nearby building as the left began to come towards them. Without weapons he continued to build up speed while aiming for the corner. Out of the corner of his eye the front left leg landed exactly where he wanted it and he knew that this was his only chance at getting onto the Scarab. Another second passed and he was at the end of the building and planted both feet and pushed off the corner towards the Scarab's leg, the ledge exploding in a cloud of dust from the impact of his feet. Hurtling through the air, Luke's vision was quickly consumed by the purple metal of the legs and he reached out with all of the magnetic grips on his armor just before slamming into the bottom of the purple sheath over the joints and sliding down. For a few seconds nothing seemed to stick and he slid down the metal, sparks spraying around him from his shields and armor reacting with the Scarab. Finally the magnets in his right forearm caught and he hung limp as the leg flew up into the air and then came back down a block away from where he had jumped onto the machine. There was no time to waste though and he locked on with his other arm and began to scramble up the leg of the Scarab. Plasma fire began to sizzle past him but was responded to by the staccato fire of his squad mates running alongside. Catching a brief glimpse of them he could see Dagger and Katana vaulting between buildings as he continued to climb. This was the most dangerous part since he was most exposed but it seemed like the covering fire he was getting was proving to be just enough to keep them from being focused solely on him.

"_I'm getting weird chatter over the BattleNet…apparently the Covenant are expecting the Prophet of Truth to be arriving at Earth soon_," Nathan said, sounding confused as if he was trying to explain and analyze the info he had at the same time.

"Doesn't help the situation at hand Nathan!" Luke replied, getting to the apex of the joint and making the jump down onto the highest deck of the Scarab. A volley of spikes just barely missed him from a squad of Brutes moving up to get him but now that he was protected from the ground troops below Dagger and Katana were pouring their fire onto the sides of the Scarab which forced the Covenant to duck down and give Luke a few precious seconds. Pulling his BR55 out, Luke moved forward off the top deck towards the opening below him. There was a flash of orange and he fired off a burst as a Grunt waddled through the arch, his teammate frozen with fear but taken down a split second later. The troop bay below was sure to be swarming with troops and he rolled two grenades down the ramp to where they'd be waiting for him.

"_Fucking kidding me_!" Meyers called out over the radio. "_Scarab blew out the building we were about to jump to, you're on your own_!" Luke ignored the radio and looked at his motion tracker which was lighting up red all over. Without some sort of elevation delineation it was impossible to tell if it was from the Covenant troops on the ground below or on the Scarab but he had his answer when he looked back and a Brute popped up over the side of the ramp he had just come down. A quick burst caught it just above the chest plate while the shields flared up, enraging the beast. Two more shots to the head blew the shielding away as it came at Luke with its Spikers and swung them like swords, the twin blades underneath each one hissing through the air. Dodging the attacks another burst caught it just above its chest plate where the underarmor was exposed, spraying purple blood on the deck. Infuriated at the wounds, Luke tried to dodge one of the blows but was hit in the ribs with the side of his left gun and was tossed up into the air towards the top of the Scarab. It was immediately apparent that he had a number of broken ribs but he ignored the shooting pains each time he took a breath and waited with his weapon at the ready as the Brute started to come at him. Just as he expected the ape-like creature stopped to roar for a second and two full bursts filled its mouth, nearly taking the Brute's head off while it slumped to the ground. He had only a second to catch his breath before a few more Grunts accompanied by a Jackal appeared and he took them down. Tossing his magazine to the ground he slapped a new one in and started to make his way back down. Poking his head around the lip to look down into the troop bay he was welcomed by a barrage of spikes that lodged themselves in the wall of the Scarab. Growing frustrated he pulled two more grenades out and tossed them down at the entrenched Brutes. Quickly running to the rear of the Scarab he rounded the corner and was face to face with the Hunter cluster that was controlling the machine. Protected behind a shield, the orange worms were squirming in a tight cluster bathed in the heat and light of two lamps mounted opposite of them. Smashing the butt of his rifle into the shield it flickered and crackled but remained steady even after a few more assaults on it.

"_Behind!_" Dagger's voice called out and Luke whipped around to see a Brute rounding the corner, more interested in the two shooting at him from atop the building that Luke. It took a second to plant his foot in the Brute's shoulder and send him tumbling off the back of the Scarab. It most likely wouldn't kill such a resilient beast but it wouldn't feel good, either. Focusing back on the Hunter colony he saw the four projectors for the shielding and set about trying to damage them. It took a few solid hits but the lower left projector began to flicker before failing, exposing the Hunters to his arms as he reached into the mess and began to tear the worms apart. Orange blood and gore covered the ground and his armor and the pile of dead worms began to grow as alarms started to sound from the Scarab. Seeing that the worms stretched much further into the Scarab than just the one area that he was looking at he pulled out one of his remaining grenades and jammed it into the cluster and took cover behind the dividing wall opposite of them. He waited for the grenade to go off and was awarded with a disgusting spray of worms on either side of him. At the exact same moment the Scarab jerked back and forth and he watched the rear legs lock in place and the entire machine begin to sag towards the ground. A cascading series of failures began to engulf the Scarab and explosions of blue sparks and chunks of metal shot off into the air. Sprinting up the rear leg Luke pulled himself up to the top and took a quick look at the ground as the Covenant ran for cover before jumping down to the building below. He picked up more momentum then he thought and slammed into the thin roof and broke right through that and the top floor before coming to rest in a pile of stone and wood on the bottom floor. Still not able to stop he put his shoulder down and broke through the back of the building and into the next street just as the Scarab detonated. Blinding white light engulfed the area a second before a wave of searing heat boiled the snow and turned it into steam. The sound was almost deafening and the ground shook while Luke tried to keep his footing and dodging the debris that was already beginning to rain down on him.

"_BattleNet is already in a panic after seeing that, they're holding position to look at a new plan of attack_," Nathan reported.

"Good," he said while running over to Dagger and Katana who were dropping down from the rooftops.

"I like the look," Dagger joked, pointing at his armor that was covered in a mix of Brute and Hunter blood and the debris from the building. Luke just shrugged and led them away from the building and the streets that were sure to be filled with patrolling Covenant troops. For the second time in an hour the deafening roar of battle was replaced with an uncomfortable silence punctuated by the distant cracks and thumps of explosions. Taking cover in a relatively untouched building they took the time to get situated and figure out their next course of action.

"We need to make our way to the Mall," Luke said as he looked at the map on his HUD, the UNSC forces there highlighted in loose lines around the vast open space. "A temporary command center has been set up by the World War II memorial, in between the Lincoln and Washington monuments. It doesn't look like we're too far away from the lines so I think we can just hoof it there and stay out of sight."

"What about the Lieutenant?" Katana asked.

"Have you heard from him yet?" Luke asked back, challenging her. She shook her head. "He's an ODST, he knows what he's doing but our goal is to link back up with the main force."

"Seems foolish to put everyone so close together, if the Covenant were smart they'd just shoot at us from orbit and this whole battle would be over," Dagger said.

"Maybe but they committed troops to take the city for who the fuck knows and as long as we're still breathing we're going to keep fighting." No one was sure if the "we" referred to his squad or the Humans as a whole but it didn't really matter. "C'mon," he said, tapping Katana on the knee and patting Dagger on the shoulder as he made his way out of the building.


	47. Hope Fades

"Hope Fades"

Luke was nothing but a shadow as he dashed from building to building, the sounds of the battle at the Mall getting louder and louder. Covenant troops had begun to assault the Eastern most position at the Capitol Building but the Lincoln Memorial on the opposite side was calm for the moment. Coming up to the corner of a squat building he saw that on the other side of the street was a thick grouping of trees surrounding a small opening.

"Friendly coming out," he hissed over the local channel and saw the faintest silhouette of a Marine pop up near a bush, the ammo counter on his rifle glowing a soft blue. Luke clicked his head lamps sending four focused beams of halogen light out at them.

"_Roger that_," he heard back and after checking the street he pushed through the bush and was face to face with a ragged band of Marines. Most of them had some sort of wound and were missing even the most basic pieces of armor. It was obvious they'd already been through Hell and were getting ready to dive right back into it.

"Reinforcements?" someone whispered.

"No," was all Luke could say. In the darkness he couldn't see the disappointment on their faces but he could feel it and led his squad across the snow covered yard back into the trees on the other side. Running through for a little bit they arrived at the Memorial which was buzzing with activity. All over were squads of Marines setting up barricades and machine gun nests with more moving to new positions in the lines. Warthogs were parked behind piles of dirty snow and portable AA batteries were set up around the frozen reflecting pool. Easily a few thousand Marines were set up in the area and the accompanying open space further South. A wing of Hornets buzzed overhead while Pelicans screamed in from the clouds and almost shot straight into the ground before flaring up at the last second to avoid any Covenant AA fire. To the East was the temporary command station which was nothing but a cluster of portable buildings similar to those that had been set up on the outskirts that they had run into before. Further away he could see that the hill around the Washington Monument was terraced with sandbags and metal barriers and could provide 360 degrees of fire on any attackers. The entire set up was quite bittersweet since the same trenches they were digging to saves themselves in the coming battle would most likely also be their graves in a matter of hours. "Nathan, can you please patch me though to command?" A second passed then he was greeted by an operator.

"_Sir_?"

"I need to speak with whoever is in command, it's urgent," Luke replied.

"_One moment please_," the operator responded. "_You're patched through to command_."

"_Lieutenant, this is General McQuade. We've been told that you have some important information_?" Apparently the General that they had met up with earlier had relocated to the heart of the city to orchestrate the battle.

"Yes sir. Our assault on the Scarab was a success and the tank was destroyed. However, there is a large contingent of Covenant ground forces and possible light armor and tanks moving in from the West behind me and my squad, estimated to be between one to two battalions in size and led by what appeared to be a Chieftain."

"We saw your fireworks from here, Lieutenant. It was quite the show. Unfortunately you're not the only one to report troop movements like that. I want you to-."

"_You are, all of you, vermin."_ The new voice cut through the speakers with a quick hiss of static, the accented voice unfamiliar. _"Cowering in the dirt, thinking what, I wonder? That you might escape the coming fire? _No_. Your world will burn until its surface is but _glass_! Not even your Demon will live to creep...blackened...from its hole to mar the reflection of our passage; the culmination of our Journey. For your destruction is the will of the gods! And I...I am their instrument!" _

"Who the fuck was that?" Luke asked immediately.

"_Unsure. It appears the Covenant were able to patch through our comms across the entire planet, at least that's what I can guess judging by the chatter from other units. Ah…it appears to have been the Prophet of Truth, the last of the three Covenant Hierarchs. Reports are suggesting he is devoting most of his forces in and around the New Mombasa region…but I'm not exactly sure why at the moment,"_ Nathan responded.

"Looks like he still has more than enough troops to spread the love around…" He trailed off when he caught sight of a Pelican dropping through the cloud layer with flames licking at its wings and smoke trailing behind it. Bouncing in the turbulent air the Pelican continued to streak through the sky before dipping down beneath some buildings.

"_Change of plans Sword. A high value target has just gone down near your position and I need you to recover him or his body_."

"I saw."

"_The Cole Protocol may not be useful anymore but his neural implants still have records of every UNSC facility and outpost. The Covenant cannot be allowed to get their hands on that information. You're going alone though, you won't get there before the Covenant arrive at the front lines and I need your squad holding strong_."

"Aye sir," he responded, looking at his two companions. He immediately unhooked his backpack and took out enough ammo to fill the empty slots in his vest. Nathan dropped a waypoint on the location of the downed Pelican and started to jog away when he turned around. "I promise I'll be back," he said staring right at Katana. He wasn't sure if he would be able to keep it but he resolved then that nothing would stop him from trying. Quickly speeding up to an almost full sprint Luke smashed through frozen bushes and crossed the open space in a couple of seconds. Back into the woods he leapt over the barriers and heads of the Marines without missing a beat and was almost across the street before he heard their surprise at the blur that went past them. Sprinting across abandoned sports fields he broke through another row of bushes and across the snow covered street and in between two cars. He continued up the steps to a white marble building and used it as cover as he continued to make his way forward although he slackened his pace fearing advance elements of the Covenant's main force beginning to get close to the Mall. His fears were quickly proven correct when a red dot appeared on the fringe of his motion tracker indicating a target off to his left. In front of him was a row of planters that cut the steps in half and he easily mounted over them and could see the grid-like structure of the streets in this part of the town spreading out in front of him. Trying to spot the target he waited for another pulse of his motion tracker but nothing appeared. He had been as silent as possible but there was no way of knowing if the Covenant had heard him or not. Kneeling down he scanned the rooftops of the buildings and listened intently but there was no sign of the enemy. Tense seconds continued to pass and he could feel his heart near his ears as he waited for the slightest change in his surroundings but there was nothing. A moment later and the dot appeared and quickly moved parallel to his position in the opposite direction. He fought of the burning instinct to hunt it down. The Marines would just have to deal with it themselves or wait till he could get back.

Staying low and being even more aware of how quiet he was, Luke made his way down the other side of the stairs and was down on the iced over sidewalks and abandoned streets. Without any real cover he turned on his camouflage plating and melted into his surroundings. The waypoint was still quite a few blocks North and East of his position and he debated the best way to get there.

"What kind of Covenant presence do we have in this part of the city?" he asked. There was a moment's pause as Nathan scanned the BattleNet.

"_Numerically it's relatively small but it appears that there are a number of Brute Stalker teams patrolling this region as well as Jackal snipers; they appear to be the lead elements of the detachment we encountered earlier in Georgetown. However, I am picking up a small amount of chatter related to the crash. I can only presume that local assets will be redirected to secure the site." _He stood up to a half crouch and began to make his way down the street with his rifle a split second away from its firing position. He needed to get to that position as soon as possible and secure the data. Even if they lost Earth he didn't want the Covenant to be able to hunt down the survivors. With various office buildings on his left side he continued to make steady progress down the streets while watching his right side for any side of the Brute teams that Nathan had found in the sector. Overhead he heard a sort of hissing sound off in the distance and froze, looking up through the falling snow into the redish clouds overhead. Scanning through the haze he spotted a set of blue lights streak past as the familiar whine of a Banshee followed. More and more running lights were visible and back behind him he could hear the heavy turrets located around the prefab base that had been landed at the Washington Monument activate and spew out rounds at the fliers.

"It's starting," he said to himself. At a much lower altitude were a number of Phantoms flying past with their side doors open revealing the troops huddled inside.

"_The Covenant air force is attempting to land troops without our lines_."

"Well there's nothing you and I can do," Luke responded and he started to move forward again, an eye to the sky in case one of the ships decided to land near his position. He finally arrived at the intersection that would take him East towards the crash site, near the old convention center. Crossing carefully he stopped near a snow bank and made sure no one spotted him before he decided to make his first move. He checked all of the storefronts and alleyways but didn't spot anything out the ordinary, but something still felt off. Just as he got up to start moving a burst of spikes sailed over his head and embedded themselves in a nearby wall. He sprinted across the street as a squad of Stalkers ran parallel with him, their active camouflage shimmering while they moved. Ducking into an alley he watched his motion tracker as four targets moved around his position. Over the quiet wind and the distant gunfire he could hear the ragged breathing of the apelike creatures, an occasional bark signaling they were still near him. He continued to keep an eye on the other end of the alley but for the moment they seemed to be giving him space. Edging up to the corner he pressed his helmet up against the concrete edge and looked around at the intersection but couldn't see the Brutes anywhere. Out of the corner of his eye a small metallic orb with growing red lights sailed through the air and buried itself into the snow. He was about to fire at it but without seeing where it came from he didn't want to expose himself. A moment after the object landed in the snow he watched as his motion tracker began to act up, targets seemingly running around him and on top of him, the motion tracker occasionally dissolving into static before returning to normal. Luke's mouth twitched unconsciously, angry at how smart the Brutes were, much more cunning that the average foot soldiers he normally encountered. Sliding back up against the corner he peered out over the snow covered streets and was greeted by five glowing spikes slamming into the stone just in front of his face. Instantly he was down on his knees firing at the small orange puffs of steam from the Brute's Spiker. The rounds impacted the shields and the Brute ducked down, surrounded by the crackling blue energy before they charged back up a few seconds later. Now that the Brutes knew where he was at two incendiary grenades came sailing through the air and impacted near him. The first went over his head and slammed into the wall behind him splashing the superheated gel all over the wall and on the ground. The second was much closer and hit the corner of the wall that he was on and the flames immediately wrapped around and spread around his feet as the fire engulfed him. Some of the gel got on his chest and he was immediately surrounded by flames as the hydrostatic gel boiled from the heat and the plating turned white hot and was slowly becoming less and less solid. He set aside the pain of his skin burning and pushed through the fire out into the street, the black smoke and still raging flames obscuring his vision for a moment. He could only imagine what he looked like to the Brutes as this enormous soldier stepped through their attacks seemingly unharmed, flames still covering him. With his rifle ready he caught the faint glow of their Cyclops helmets and quickly fired four bursts at the red eye. Before the Brute could even react his shields had failed and the fifth burst tore the helmet apart and riddle its brain.

"_I'm_ _picking up multiple system errors from your suit. Your camouflage plating on the front of your body has been burned away and there are a number of gel leaks and dead sensors_."

"I'm fine," Luke replied back, his chest searing with pain and still feeling like his skin was boiling. From two directions the spikes just barely missed him and in the middle of the street he dropped to his knees and emptied the magazine into the Brute who dropped to the ground with blood gushing from a wound in its neck as the snow turned purple with each pulse of its heart. Luke instinctively reached for his chest pouch but was greeted with a jumbled mess of melted nylon and metal, the fire burning so hot and so quickly that the rounds didn't even have time to go off. The sudden change of plans left him off guard momentarily and his two remaining enemies took advantage of this. One of the Brutes unleashed another hail of spikes at him and this time they found their mark as the first few impacted his shields and fell to the ground bent and warped. Once his shields were down though the superheated spikes tore into his armor, the first two going high and lodging themselves in the top of his shoulder pads. The third found its mark in his left bicep and he almost called out in pain as the searing hot piece of metal lodged itself in his muscle. Another skimmed the top of left hand as it reached back for one of the two magazines located on the small of his back, the final spike hit his left ring finger and tore it clean off just above the first knuckle. Unable to contain it he cried out while still reaching back for the magazine but was stopped just a moment before being able to load it when he was rocked by a powerful blow. Sent flying into the air he lost his grip on the magazine from the blood dripping from his severed finger while his BR55 landed about a foot away. Rolling onto his back he already had his M6K out and let loose the entire magazine when he spotted a shimmer in front of him. The Brute roared in anger as the rounds tore his shielding apart but the gun clicked empty just as they broke leaving Luke with no other option. Grabbing his combat knife he rolling backwards over himself and jumped up to his feet, his right arm grabbing the hilt with the blade facing outward. Lumbering over him was the enormous stalker, the gunmetal armor seemingly changing colors as he moved closer. Even through his filters Luke could smell the Stalker's musky fur and the rotting blood that caked it. Roaring, it lunged at him but Luke just barely got out of the way and cut the knife across its right shoulder causing the creature to roar out in a mixture of pain and anger as purple blood seemed from the wound. He whirled around and pulled out a Plasma Rifle strapped to his waist and fired a long burst at Luke but the bolts were always a few inches behind him as he ran out of the way, the pain of the spike slowing him. Clenching his jaw he removed the nearly one foot long rod and wielded like a second knife. With his Plasma Rifle in a cooldown cycle the Brute lunged back at Luke, seemingly ignorant of the new weapon in his hand. Luke followed suit and jumped at the Brute and the two slammed into each other as he forced the knife in just below the base of the Brute's neck. Surprised by the weight of the alien Luke fell backwards as blood poured onto his facemask from the Brute's wound and mouth. The sharp teeth snapped at him but he was able to keep the Brute's head back with his right arm.

"I'll tear you apart!" it roared in his face, its breath nauseating. Luke ignored this and with his left arm jammed the spike into the back of the Brute's head and forced it out just below its left eye. Immediately going limp, he pushed the enormous creature off of him and began to scan for the last Brute. With no weapons he grabbed the single Spike Grenade attached to the dead Brute's belt and eyed the surroundings for the camouflaged Brute. A moment before the Brute jumped him he heard a single ragged breath and swung around with the grenade as the spikes on the end hooked into his back. In one motion he planted his left leg into the Brute's chest and pushed it backwards with all his strength before turning to run. A second later and the grenade went off, obliterating the midsection of the Brute as more spikes sailed through the air. The blast knocked him off balance but it was a quickly followed by a sting pain in his torso. Looking down was a spike glowing orange just below his ribcage. Groaning, he dropped to one knee and watched as a small amount of blood trickled from the wound before he grabbed the spike with both hands and pulled it out. Clenching his jaw for a second he couldn't help but cry out before leaning forward and bracing himself with his right fist in the snow, a small pool of blood beneath where he was. The pain quickly went away a second later and he could see some of the autoinjecting biofoam oozing out of the wound, the local anesthesia dulling the pain.

"_None of your wounds are critical_," Nathan said. "_Biometrics show that the spike missed your major organs and the internal bleeding has been stopped. I'm not sure how much more you can take, however_."

"Like I said Nathan, I'm fine. As long as I can't feel it it can't slow me down," he replied. Gritting his teeth he stood up and went over to his rifle and the magazine. Slapping it in he looked up the street and could see the thick black smoke of the Pelican wreckage. He fell into a slow job and arrived there shortly after dispatching the Brutes. Looking around he could see that the Pelican had come in hard and traced its descent as it cut its way through various buildings further up the block. Windows were shattered and parts of the buildings were torn apart by the starboard wings slicing through them before the bird hit the ground and burrowed its way into a lobby. Smaller fires raged from leaking fuel igniting some nearby furniture and wood but the fire seemed like the least of his concerns. The main body of the Pelican had clearly been hit by plasma fire and many of its internals were exposed and destroyed. Large portions of the top of the hull were torn apart and some metal from the buildings and cut through and collected inside of the rear passenger bay. The port section of the Pelican was badly damaged from the impact and had collapsed in on itself causing some small fuel leaks and some live wires to send sparks out. The entire cockpit had been destroyed and he could see an arm of a pile still attached to a control stick a few feet away from the wreckage. The pilot was nowhere to be seen. Walking over the rubble and wreckage he made his way to the back of the Pelican and pushed a piece of metal out of the way and was met with a gruesome site. Four Marines had been riding in the back but had all been killed by the impact, most missing limbs or impaled by various pieces of wreckage. Ignoring the disturbing image he took a few cautious steps inside, trying to find the target. Scanning back and forth through the wreckage he spotted the telltale gray uniform of an officer underneath some wreckage near the front bulkhead which was amazingly still intact. Pulling the piece of metal off he saw the surprisingly young looking man lying still, a small piece of shrapnel lodged in his side which had turned most of his uniform and the floor red from the blood. "Can you remotely disable them?" Luke asked, hoping that he wouldn't have to destroy the by hand.

"_Attempting to connect now_…" He was about to take a step back when the officer's hand shot out and grabbed on his arm. Shocked, Luke tried to pull away for a second but saw him slowly open his eyes.

"Just listen," he said weakly, his face pale from the blood loss and cold air. "I'm already too far gone, just listen. Help is on its way…they just need to know where to go…the beacon is…is in a small case. Activate it on your position…"

"Who's coming, sir? Who's the help?" Luke asked quickly while also trying to spot the case. Just out of reach was a small plastic crate that was clearly heavily reinforced.

"Elites…no time to explain…FUBAR." For a moment Luke wasn't sure if he had heard the man correctly and figured he was just speaking about elite units. Maybe a battalion of Spartans that no one knew about?

"Sir, who's the elite unit?"

"No…_the_ Elites…there has been a breaking of the Covenant…" He almost laughed at the similarities between the encounter he had had hours earlier with the dying Elite who said essentially the same thing.

"When are they coming? How many? We won't last long without their help." There was no response and Luke watched as the last wisps of life left the man, his eyes looking a thousand miles away and his arm going limp but not letting go of his wrist. "Wipe his implants, we need to get back." Walking over to the crate he tore it open and saw the familiar purple object nestled in foam. Clearly Covenant it was the same basic device that he'd seen the Covenant use on the _Regrowth_ that seemed to act as a radar and could pinpoint his location with the odd symbol. Sticking it in the back of his belt pack he made sure it was secure before stepping out of the Pelican.

"_The implants have been wiped_," Nathan said. "_Shall I inform General McQuade of this information_?" he asked, referring to the beacon.

"No, we don't know if the Covenant have cracked out communications after that stunt the Prophet pulled earlier. I need to get back _now_ and tell him in person." With his rifle ready Luke began to run back towards the monument and his squad.

**A/N: So many apologies for how long this chapter took to write up. It was about halfway done when I ran into a busy period in my life and unfortunately something like this just can't fit into my schedule. I should get back onto a schedule within the next couple of weeks that will allow me to get the last few chapters up and finish up the first half of this story. Yup! Sword will be finished hopefully by June. This definitely became a much larger undertaking than I had envisioned and what was going to be one story is going to actually be two! I don't want to give anything else away but once I'm finished I'll post something after that will explain what I'm planning on doing with the rest of this story.**


	48. The Alamo

"The Alamo"

Luke was running through the fresh snow down the streets when he was forced to stop and let himself rest for a moment. Despite all of his enhancements his body was finally beginning to protest the nonstop trauma he'd been through since crashing in the Pelican the day before. The joints in his body were burning and his muscles were screaming at him to stop, all this while his wounds throbbed and made it hard to operate. Slowing to a walk he gave his body a momentary break while taking a glance around at the city. The snow had begun to slack off in intensity as the thick and wet flakes gave way to lighter powder which gave the whole nightscape a shimmer as they floated to the ground. Visibility remained low but he could see the momentary flashes from the battle raging off in the distance, the sounds following soon after. To his right Luke spotted a mirrored row of windows on a building and he caught a glimpse of himself in the orange glow of the street lights that were miraculously still on in this part of the city. His eyes lingered and he couldn't look away from himself. The JORMUNGANDR armor was scarred and caked in various colors of blood, dried gel oozing out from pressure valves and breaks in his armor. Taking a few steps forward he continued to examine himself, eyeing melted armor on his chest and the other plasma burns across his body. His own blood was still shining as it trickled from the spike that impaled his abdomen despite the biofoam that had sealed up the wound. Looking at his hand he could still feel his ring finger as if it was still there but if he tried to move it he was greeted by a stinging pain and his hand would seize up for a few seconds. The last thing that he looked at was the mirrored silver visor that stared back at him, emotionless. A hiss of static grabbed his attention.

"_-no contact - Sword_," a male voice said, words dropping in and out.

"_He's – there, just - - give him – chance_," Katana's voice replied back.

"Nathan, why is the comm chatter so choppy?"

"_It appears the Covenant are using a counter signal that's jamming our local network. It's preventing communications to get out of the affected area but it can still be transmitted locally, like there's a dome over the battlefield."_

"I get the feeling they know the Elites are on their way and they don't want anyone to know where we're at. Can we knock it out?"

"_I don't believe so. The effect seems to be coming from multiple sources, one of which is the cruiser south of our position as well as another ship in low orbit_."

"Well then we just better hope this signal is strong enough to get out. What's the situation inside the Mall look like?"

"_The defenses are failing, we need to hurry_." Luke paced a little bit, unsure of how to get back to the position. Even without his wounds he wouldn't have been able to break through the Covenant lines.

"I can't just walk my way in, I need a backdoor, something, anything," he was still pacing but then spotted a white "M" sign. "What about the Metro, is there a stop within the Mall?"

"_Yes, there's an exit within the Mall near the Washington Monument. This line should take you straight there_."

"Good enough." Bounding through the snow he waded into the almost completely covered Metro entrance and leapt down the escalator in only a few steps. The station seemed to be running on its own power supply because holographic ads began to pop up.

"_Luke Wards, do you need help with your skin? Neutrogena's new formula will clear those blemishes right up!_"

"_Get the latest in off-road technology with AMG Transport Dynamic's 2553 'Hog, Mr. Wards!_" Hearing his full name startled Luke and he looked over at the holograms displaying a young image of himself in a before and after comparison or his face superimposed in the civilian vehicle. Eight years had passed since he had been captured and in that entire time he was nothing else but Sword. He slowed down and let his rifle hang at his side as he stared back at the young boy in the image, the most recent one the database must've had on record, most likely a school photo. There was some urge deep within to reach and touch his face, a face that didn't have a care in the world at that point beyond the girls in classes and if he would make the football team or not. His mind began to race and he thought of his parents, Sarah, all of his friends, people who he were sure were all dead by now. Tears welled up in his eyes and a single drop streamed down his cheek, irritating the stubble that was growing but he let it go as the liquid began to dry almost instantly. He kept trying to pull himself away but all he could do was stare into his own eyes, his hand pushing through the hologram off to the side where it was distorted and fuzzy. Clenching his jaw he smashed the holographic projector as it exploded in a shower of sparks and the image melted away. Hunched over, he walked further into the station where the vaulted ceilings were lit by almost moody recessed lighting scattered around the circular room. Walking out onto the platform he dropped down into the tunnel and began to run into the darkness towards the direction of the Mall, his mind still on the ads that he had just come across. Once surrounded by the blackness he clicked his headlamps on but was dismayed to find that somehow the right side lights were damaged and weren't turning on.

"_Mind telling me what that was all about?_" Nathan asked after Luke had walked in silence. It was a few seconds before Luke responded.

"I haven't heard my real name spoken since I was captured for this program…and those pictures were from when I was taken. It's been eight years since then but it almost feels like yesterday." Just as quickly as he spoke he closed his mouth again, still off-balance from what he had seen. The only thing that he could do to lessen the pain was to think of his squad and all of the others still fighting. Ahead of him he caught the first glimpse of an abandoned Metro car and edged past it, the doors open to let the passengers out and some of their belongings still sitting on the seats and in the aisles. There were a few subtle rumbles and he looked up at the ceiling of the tunnel to make sure it was staying together and thankfully all that fell was some dust that had been loosened up. Continuing forward he felt a few more shakes before a solid rumble that caused him to stumble and brace himself against the wall. "What's going on up there?"

"_Communications are…a mess but from what I can gather the Covenant are launching a massive bombardment from the Wraiths and they're landing all around us_." Picking up his pace more he passed another rail car and continued to run through the darkness, the single narrow beam of light serving as his only guide. "_This is the station here_." Swerving to the left Luke vaulted up to the platform without skipping a beat and continued to hurry up the stairs to the middle level of the station before ascending up the final escalator and breaking through the snow barrier. Luke immediately dropped to one knee to get his bearings. To his left was the long open fields leading up to the Capitol building and to his right was the Washington Monument and the Lincoln Memorial beyond that. Out in front of him across the frozen river was the Jefferson memorial engulfed in flames and smoke as a fierce battle raged. The sky happened to be one of the most terrifying sights Luke had ever seen. Countless Wraith mortars were hurtling up into the air and illuminated the clouds in a blue glow before falling back down to the Earth and burning enormous craters wherever they landed. The sound they produced added to the effect as a constant hissing filled the air before a solid thump that he could feel punched through the air, followed by another and then another. He looked down at the Lincoln Memorial and zoomed in on the defenses hoping to see his squad but with all the troops and vegetation he couldn't see anything.

"I don't even know how to get this thing to work," Luke said as he stood up and began to run towards the pre-fabricated base positioned in between the Monument and the Memorial.

"_UNSC databases have a small amount of information on Covenant technology outside of weapons but I have yet to find anything on this particular device_." Running past one of the many flag poles surrounding the monument something caught his eye and he looked up just in time to see a Wraith's mortar slam into the base, instantly detonating the magazines the supplied ammo for the defense turrets and the anti-air rocket launchers. The combined plasma and fireball boiled up into the air and produced a sickening shockwave that threw Luke back about ten feet. Landing on his back and almost losing his breath, he sat back up to still see wisps of plasma crackling in the air and red hot shrapnel still lodging itself into the snow. Thick black smoke was rolling away from the flames that were burning ferociously, ending any hope of a miraculous survivor getting out of the remains. Getting to his feet, Luke was still a little stunned from the sudden explosion and kept trying to pop his ears in a vain attempt at regaining his hearing, despite knowing it would at least be a minute or two before the ringing subsided.

"What now?" he said, dropping back to a single knee in case a sniper was looking his direction.

"_We need to activate the device to alert the Elites to our presence. Without their assistance our defenses will not hold_." Luke reached back and pulled the small purple device out. Covenant hieroglyphics floated on what he guessed was the back. Some of the symbols seemed familiar and one in particular kept catching his attention.

"_One moment, I have access to a rudimentary translation program that may help us out._"

"No…I think it's this one," he responded and followed it up while tapping the symbol. The display quickly changed to what appeared to be a map of their location and the same symbols he had seen when on the _Regrowth_ appeared where the defenders were positioned. There was a sudden series of warning alarms blaring in his ears and he saw the radiation alert on the bottom of his HUD which disappeared as quickly as it popped up. And just like that the device seemed to shut itself off, all of the holograms and lights dimming and finally going out. "Well I guess that's it," Luke finally said, dropping it into the snow. Standing back up to full height he started to make his way around the inferno surrounding the main base and started to run towards the Lincoln Memorial. "This is Sword, watch your fire from the East, friendly moving into position." Mortars continued to fall in his vicinity like bolts of lightning, one eye always towards the sky to make sure he wasn't about to get hit.

"_Sword? It's good to hear your voice_," Dagger replied.

"You too. What's the situation looking like?"

"_It's manageable_," he replied but unable to hide the stress in his voice. "_Mainly just Grunts and Jackals pushing up against our position but there's a lot of them. The Brutes are trying to soften our position up, use up our ammo and get us worn down_." Luke continued to run across the frozen Reflecting Pool, a sharp pain stabbing through his torso and then subsiding as he gritted his teeth. He didn't look down but he knew that some of the foam had come loose and he was starting to bleed out again. Most of the Marines who had been assigned to the Memorial had fanned out to man the lines but a few still remained near the crates of ammunition and stationary guns that looked out in a 180 degree arc from the steps. Spotting his squad with his HUD he ran back into the trees, the battle raging at the street where they had set up the first line of defense. All Luke had left was his Battle Rifle and the magazine that was left inside, his backpack empty of any ammo for the weapon. Spotting a crate nearby he scooped up a few and held them in his left arm as he ran up to the metal barriers and sandbag walls that had been erected, dodging plasma fire the entire time. Taking cover for a second he tossed the magazines into the bag and located Dagger and Katana who were further South down the line. Standing up to full height he sprinted the distance and ducked back down into the snow and behind cover.

"Jesus Christ…" Dagger said as he caught sight of Luke and all the damage and wounds he had sustained. Blood had covered the melted plating on the front of his chest while the various holes from the spikes were leaking his own combination of biostatic gel and blood. Obviously the worst looking of the wounds was his missing finger.

"It was rough," was all Luke could say back. Katana didn't seem to take notice at first but when she did she instantly set her rifle down and pulled out a canister of biofoam. "I'm fine."

"Clearly you're not," she replied back with a mixture of worry and affection. Looking down he could see a slow but steady stream of blood from his abdominal wound. She gently placed her left hand onto his stomach and he sucked in momentarily as she slid the needle into the wound and the stinging as the foam filled in the openings. "Take it easy…we need you alive for the next few hours, not the next few minutes."

"They won't get rid of me that easy," he replied with a quick laugh which Dagger caught onto. "Let's push back hard. Help may be on the way and we just need to keep going till they get here." Taking charge of the situation he took a quick look of what they were up against. Like Dagger had said the Covenant troops mainly consisted of Jackals and Grunts swarming the lines with very little in terms of strategy or tactic. While the Marines were fighting them off the resistance was too scattered and uncoordinated. "All units in my vicinity listen up!" Those Marines who were free to listen turned their heads and listened for their squadmates as Luke stood up and faced the Covenant troops head on. "We need to hold this position for as long as possible! Right now the Covenant are trying to soften us up before making a push to break our lines! We _cannot_ let that happen!" Looking around, more faces were turned towards him as they waited to hear what he was going to say next. "We're going to make them bring their big guns against us now while we can still fight back! And when they do we're going to make them fight for every inch of territory!" Looking towards Dagger and Katana he gave them more explicit instructions. "Move down the line and tighten up the fighting. Make sure we clear out whoever's lingering in the streets and focus our fire into the streets since they're natural kill zones. I'll stay here and keep things locked down on my end, just be ready to pull back when I give the order because there's no way in hell we'll be able to hold this position forever."

"You got it, boss," Dagger said as he jumped to his feet and ran towards the Potomac side of the lines. Katana was a little slower as she looked away from Luke and started to take a step but stopped.

"_Stay safe…we all need you right now…_I _need you right now_," she finally said over a private channel. He wasn't sure how to respond to this and instead nodded and turned away as she did the same, head drooping a little. The moment passed in a single motion he raised his rifle and found the closest target and fired a burst right into it's the skull. The Grunt's head almost completely exploded onto his comrades who stopped for a second and were quickly shot down but other Marines.

"Clear the straggles up and walk your fire back towards the street! Out here we're too scattered and ineffective but if you get them into the streets there they'll get torn to shreds!" The Marines acknowledged this and started to clear up the stragglers who were trying to jump behind portable shields that had been placed out in the street in advance of the Brutes' main force. Jackals began to huddle together to form an impromptu phalanx but a single grenade was more than enough to scatter them and pick them off one by one. A lone, low ranking Brute vainly tried to find cover as Luke pumped burst after burst into him before he succumbed to the onslaught and fell onto the marble steps of the building opposite them. Just as he had hoped the Covenant forces had been pushed back enough to allow the Marines to focus their fire on the streets where they were coming from. Facing stiffer resistance the Covenant appeared to wise up as a solid row of purple and pink shields appeared in front of a swarm of Grunts back in the street and it began to move slowly towards them, green plasma shooting back at them. Ignoring the immediate threat, Luke looked up the street and could see the main Brute force assembling blocks and blocks away from their current position. What appeared to be at least one Wraith slid into view flanked by a number of Ghosts and the Brutes' own creation, the so-called Chopper. Phantoms continued to travel between the staging area and other locations back behind the Covenant lines, presumably bringing more troops and equipment to bear against them. The only saving grace seemed to be that they didn't have a Scarab running amok.

"Incoming!" Looking up into the sky he began to hear the unmistakable hiss of a Banshee and spotted three flying in formation out to the South over the Potomac, clearly trying to come up their lines and catch the Marines exposed.

"Get into the trees! Now!" he yelled out, waving the soldiers away and towards the trees where they would have some cover. "Do we have any rockets!"

"I do sir!" a Marine replied down the line. He hefted the M41 up onto his shoulder and aimed it up into the sky towards the Banshees. Looking behind him he saw a few others with launchers do the same while their comrades continued to move towards cover. Shifting his focus back towards the Covenant moving towards his position he sent some rounds down range to keep them on their toes. Blue plasma bolts began to strike their position but the first of two rockets sailed into the air towards the Banshees who were flying in a triangle formation. Immediately they spun away from each other but the warheads both remained locked onto the one on the left and tracked it through the air. One hit the canard of the Banshee and detonated and did only cosmetic damage but the second followed up a moment later and hit the fuselage of the Banshee destryoing the entire craft, its flaming wreckage falling back to the ground. The other two quickly regained control and continued to fire on their position, forcing Luke to dodge them.

"Save those rockets! One at a time!" he ordered as the Marines prepared to fire again. A single rocket shot out into the air and locked onto the Banshee closest to them. The bright light from its motor streaked through the falling snow and fog and slammed into the nose of the Banshee, a bright orange and red flash of light quickly erupting in an even brighter flash of blue plasma. Glowing chunks of metal rained down around Luke as he ducked down behind cover, narrowly missing debris that was still spewing superheated plasma. Without looking he heard the sound of another rocket fired off and the Banshee it targeted explode.

"_Bad news, we've got heavy incoming_," Dagger reported calmly. Peeking over the barrier he saw that the Brutes had used the momentary distraction to start advancing and were making fast time; only a block or two away from their position. Even worse was the Wraith that was moving up behind them, the main gun glowing angrily through the haze. Out of position and outgunned Luke knew that they needed to start moving back towards the Memorial while they still had control of the situation. Once the bullets started flying things would get too hectic.

"We're retreating back through the trees towards the second line. Make it quick but orderly," a few spikes hissed through the air, cutting him off. The Marines quickly responded with some sporadic fire but it was ineffective. "That Wraith needs to die, it'll tear us apart if we let it."

"_I'll handle it_," Dagger replied back. Luke was about to protest but he held his tongue. In his condition and with the damage that his armor had sustained he didn't have a chance, at least Dagger could use his camouflage to stay hidden.

"Ok." Dashing from the sandbags back to the tree line he saw that the Marines had all moved into cover behind the treeline and were waiting for their orders. "Squad leaders, start leapfrogging back towards the Memorial. Keep the pressure up!" Immediately the sergeants began to bark orders and their subordinates reacted in the blink of an eye. One by one the Marines began to slide back to a tree behind him, cover his buddy who went past him, then repeated the process. Fire from the Covenant continued to intensify and the Marines escalated in response as they slowly continued their retreat. Luke remained at the front of the group, focusing his fire on the Brutes that tried to get closer, killing a few and wounding others before they were surrounded by allies and taken out of the line of fire.

"Kat, go ahead and make sure they're ready for what's coming. Keep your sniper close too, I want you to try and keep them at arm's length for as long as possible."

"_Got it_," she replied and sprinted the short distance back towards the Memorial. Luke was able to watch Dagger make his way through the Brute lines but because of the trees beginning to envelop him and the haze, all he could see was the arrow marking his position. His eyes quickly snapped to a bright light in the darkness and he spotted an incendiary grenade sailing through the air. While it didn't appear to be aimed directly at him, it was close enough that he needed to get out of the way. The sound of the breaking glass was followed a split second later by a blistering wave of heat that instantly began melting the ice and snow near Luke. A few short screams quickly died out in gurgles and he turned just in time to see a Marine taking one last step forward, his body already black and engulfed in roaring flames, before falling forward and breaking apart as the flames burned through his flesh. A nauseating smell filled the air and Luke momentarily switched to his air reserves to keep from smelling and tasting the foulness. The source of the grenade quickly became clear when he saw a single red eye floating around, barely visible. He didn't have time to play games with the Infiltrators like he did earlier and looked around for a quick solution.

"Hey! Trade!" he called out to a Marine a few trees away. In his hands was a shotgun that he looked down at for a moment as if afraid to give it away. Tossing his BR55 at the Marine he motioned for him to send the shotgun back over which he did reluctantly. Catching it before it landed in the snow he quickly dashed between a few trees, focused on the glowing eye. Once he was a few feet away he took one long lunge and fired the shotgun into the back of the Infiltrator. The single blast nearly blew the Brute in half as most of his torso tuned into a purple mist and sprayed across the snow. Quickly pumping a new shell, Luke looked for another target but didn't find any allies coming at him. Catching back up to the Marines they were almost out of the woods and crossing the opening back towards the Memorial. The area surrounding the Memorial was heavily defended with metal barriers and sandbags set up in rings around and up the stairs. Machine gun nests were set up at various points that allowed them to cover almost all of the area surrounding their position. Glancing around as he hopped over the barriers he could see the Marines were even more haggard then he originally thought. Catching their breath and tending to wounds he could see the bags under their bloodshot eyes, the dirt and frostbite on exposed skin. Their equipment was dented, broken, burned, or even just missing. As he walked past they looked up at him almost longingly, as if he was supposed to be the one to save them all. Up at the top of the steps he saw Katana moving people around, preparing them all for the assault that was supposed to be coming any moment.

"We're about as ready as we can be. I've moved most of our troops over to the North side to counter the Brutes but we're shorthanded either way," she said as he walked up.

"I know," was all he could say. Looking around they had a decent amount of supplies but they were lacking in manpower.

"Why aren't they coming?" Katana asked, looking at the tree line where the Brutes were supposed to be breaking through at any moment but there was nothing. Relative silence had once again fallen over their immediate area. Looking to the East he saw the reason why. Brute squads and the armor that was accompanying them were moving towards their position from elsewhere on the Mall. "I think they're trying to make it personal."


	49. Negotiating With the Dead

"Negotiating With the Dead"

"There's no hope," Katana said as she stood next to Luke.

"There wasn't much to begin with," he replied. Standing at the top of the steps he watched as the squads moved past the Washington Monument and near the still smoking wreckage of the command center. Marines were still fighting the Covenant at various points but the lines had fallen apart. "All we've got is that beacon and who knows if it'll help." Past the Monument Luke could see at least one welcoming sight, the sun beginning to rise off in the distance. Poking through the darkness was a blue-tinged sky that was slowly spreading towards them. He knew it wasn't going to actually change how the battle was going to turn out but just the thought of the sun and some sort of light was a welcoming thought. A sudden burst of gunfire caught his attention and he snapped his head to the left where Marines were firing into the trees but they started shouting to stop. Out of the trees came Dagger looking beaten but still alive.

"_You can take out the next Wraith_," he said with a laugh in his voice. A quick glance over at their former position revealed a plume of black smoke beginning to billow into the air marking the position of the blown out tank. Dagger was taking his time coming back to the monument when a sudden hail of fire from the trees caused him to bolt into action and he covered the remaining distance in the blink of an eye. Spikes and plasma impacted the sandbags and metal barriers and the Marines responded instantly. Luke sprung into action and began to run down the stairs to reinforce the position, stopping near the machine gun nests as he went.

"Hold your fire until they're out of the trees and keep it accurate!" he ordered as he moved on. Replacing the shotgun with a spare BR55 he took aim at the first Brute and began to pump burst after burst into him. Before he had made it out of the trees the Brute clutched its chest and fell to the ground with a roar. The Grunts that were surrounding him began to scatter for a moment before other Brutes corralled them but the Marines quickly dropped the squat creatures with little trouble, decreasing the incoming fire. Zipping over Luke's head were white sniper contrails and he could hear four consecutive shots and watched four Brutes drop less than a second later. Dagger had taken up position as well and was pulsing his MA5C into the Grunts, occasionally tossing a grenade at the groups as they got close. For the most part they were able to hold their own against the incoming troops but Luke knew it was a temporary victory. He checked the pool out to his right and could see even more Covenant forces moving towards their position which would dilute their resistance as they were forced to reposition to face the new threat. When he looked back at the trees a machine gun opened up behind him, the heavy bore gun spitting out slugs in a fast chugging. The golden tracers tearing through a Brute who had sprinted into the open, his shields flaring for a second before breaking off allowing his armor to be pierced. It only took a moment for the rounds to shred the Brute and the moment he dropped the gun went silent, pleasing Luke.

"_Anyone hearing this?_" a voice suddenly crackled over the radio. Unsure if it was a private channel or one of the UNSC wide bands he looked around and saw some of the Marines tapping their earpieces and glancing at each other.

"This is Lieutenant Sword, I copy."

"_Oh thank god! This is Aegis Four Three and we're trying to move to your position now. We're providing covering fire for some Marines but they're getting hit hard._" Luke got up from his position and ran parallel to the Monument so that he could try and get a glimpse of who he was talking to. Starting at the Jefferson Monument he looked further in towards the Mall when he spotted the olive green of a tank, the two machine guns blazing.

"I've got a visual on you right now. Can you break through those trees and get out onto the mall?" he asked, formulating a plan.

"_Shouldn't be a problem_," Aegis responded.

"Good. I want you to break through and draw some fire from the Covenant that are moving towards you. I've got enough spare guns to lay down some covering fire for the Marines to get over here then we'll give you some protection if things get hairy." There was a delay in a response.

"_Ok_," he finally heard, reluctantly. Luke immediately turned to the Marines around him and conveyed his plans to them. With his eyes focused on the trees he could see the dark shapes moving through the snow drifts towards them, plasma fire still harassing them. He gave the signal and immediately the front of the Monument exploded in a deafening wall of gunfire that shook the ground. The Covenant in the open were caught unaware as the bullets lit up their position. Aegis assisted in the assault with a steady stream of fire from his coaxial gun as the tank smashed through the trees and brush, the nose plowing into a snow drift and then powering back out. Chaos ensued among the Covenant troops who frantically searched for protection from the savage counter-assault from the Human defenders. Grunts disappeared in clouds of methane that instantly ignited and Jackals tried to hide behind their shields but they were unable to withstand the sheer volume of rounds being launched against them. Their Brute commanders faired marginally better, managing to make it into cover near the pool or moving back towards the WWII Monument before Aegis' fury could be turned on them.

"_We're low on one-twenties,_" Aegis radioed, referring to the high explosive rounds the main cannon fired.

"I understand, use them as you see fit," Luke replied. Off to his right the Marines that they were protecting were able to get behind cover in the Monument and quickly found positions to help defend, their part in the fight still very much important. Luke remained defiant on the Monument, standing completely exposed as the Covenant troops started to amass in the distance, his presence daring them to attack. All around the Covenant's legions moved towards them in a silent procession. Thousands of the aliens marched up towards the WWII Monument and began to take up defensive positions around the columns representing the fifty states of the United States, the lights still illuminating the white marble. More were making their way along the Potomac River from the Jefferson Memorial to his right, the same group that dislodged Aegis and his squad. The final third of troops moved in from the West where Luke and his squad had made their way from Georgetown. Barely giving the defenders a moment to breathe, the Covenant began their assault again, the Brute commanders ordering the Grunts forward. Instead of targeting the Monument, the Grunts fired at Aegis who was positioned out in front of them. Green plasma splashed off the metal and melting it, the orange liquid splashing into the snow with a loud hiss. Aegis responded with his machine gun kicking up large chunks of snow and dirt around the small aliens who were equally fearful of the Brutes and the tank they were attacking. The Brutes on the left flank took the opportunity to launch their own assault, splitting their focus between the two threats.

"Shift left! They're out main threat! Take them out!" Luke bellowed, the Marines responding instantly with a volley from their weapons. Brutes continued to stream from the trees, the rounds sparking their shields until they were blown out, their armor absorbing more until they were riddled with bullets. The trees threw splinters into the air in all directions, the wood mixing with the snow in a hellish cloud of debris. Grenades began to be thrown back and forth like some ancient siege, Plasma and Incendiary Grenades glowing in the air before exploding on the steps. The Fragmentation Grenades proved more deadly, the chest pounding explosions rocking the forest, throwing Brutes to the ground while others disappeared entirely. One grenade landed at the base of a tree and detonated and shattered the base of the tree, a shower of splinters exploding out with the fragments from the grenade. This continued for minute after minute as the Covenant almost threw themselves upon the defenders with fanatic zeal. Dodging spike rounds and plasma, Luke reached for another magazine for his Battle Rifle and came up empty. A sudden panic set in and overrode his training. Sweeping his head in every direction he looked for ammo but only saw crates with their lids open, foam padding to hold the magazines in place the only thing in them. His cursed under his breath but couldn't see anything until a hand slammed into his chest. Looking down he saw an armored glove holding a couple of magazine between its fingers.

"Here," Katana said, her Battle Rifle nowhere to be seen. "I've got enough for the S2, you need these more than I do." Luke nodded and took the rounds, angry at himself for not keeping an eye on his ammunition. But just as quickly as the assault had started it tapered off. In its wake were hundreds of dead bodies strewn about the edge of the forest, Brute blood seeping into the snow and trees leaning or tipped over. Marines were crying out in agony around him from their wounds, each one a loss that they couldn't afford. Aegis continued to shoot but abruptly stopped after a loud bang. A quick look was all Luke needed, seeing the glowing gun barrel drooping down a dead giveaway that it had jammed. Grunts lay mutilated in the open, the ground glowing blue from the phosphorescent blood. Some tried to crawl to safety but their wounds would kill them sooner or later. Off in the distance was a wall of glowing shields where the Covenant engineers had established a safe haven for their troops. Brutes, Grunts, and Jackals all moved back and forth behind their protection, preparing another assault that would surely be the one that broke their resistance. Luke continued to eye his enemy from a distance, knowing each one would give their life just for a chance to kill the Humans. As he looked around the WWII Memorial he spotted a large collection of Brutes making their way through the Covenant lines. Spotting the clearly high ranking officers first, his eyes finally rested on the Brute Chieftain leading the band triumphantly. Luke knew that time was almost out.

* * *

Latus strode through the ranks of his army, inhaling the sweet euphoric smell of death. Around him his closest clan members, their cyan armor covered in human blood. His own black and red armor was covered in the intoxicating fluid, his high crest covered in meat and blood from a head butt.

"Pathetic humans," one of his guard barked, spotting their enemies huddled up on the steps of their weak monument.

His brothers laughed and snorted but Latus remained silent. He knew the humans could play the best tricks and create victory from certain defeat, but what worried him more were rumors that the Sangheili were hunting them down, The Separatists being led by The Arbiter. He pushed such thoughts to the back of his mind. Still proudly walking through his army he spotted a small pack of Unggoy who cowered away from the terrifying Chieftain, pleasing him.

"How do you propose eating the humans?" one of his pack mates asked.

"I want to eat him while his blood still pumps," another to Latus' left replied, his voice laced with hunger and victory.

"One limb at a time, their fear makes the meat that much sweeter.'

"I will-," In the blink of an eye Latus had unsheathed his Gravity Hammer. Using the razor sharp back blade he cut the Brute in half who was about to speak, his youngest cousin. Amazingly he wasn't dead, his arms reaching for his severed legs as they fell away from him into the snow. Gasping at air, Latus smashed the hammer's blunt side onto his face, ending his cousin's misery. What a shame, he thought, he would've made a fine warrior.

"You will burn the corpses of the humans, their filth is not to contaminate this ground any longer," Latus growled, blood dripping from the hammer.

His kinsmen stepped back, unwilling to anger the Chieftain any more. Content that he had halted the conversation he sheathed his hammer and began to walk again. Something was gnawing at him though. Reports had filtered in about a Demon among the humans' ranks. Fearsome warriors, few had been killed by the Covenant despite the heavy losses they had taken because of them, including hundreds of their finest ships. But now was Latus' chance to ensure his pack's dominance, he just needed the Demon's head and the Prophets would reward him greatly.

Reaching the front lines, he pulled out binoculars and surveyed their defenses. As he expected they were weak and makeshift; the humans stood little chance. Just as Latus was about to put the binoculars away he spotted a different human. Tall, muscular, and encased in damaged black, there was no mistaking the supersoldier.

"Demon," he hissed under his breath, the other Jiralhanae pretending to not hear what was said, their hearts beating faster now. Still following the Demon, Latus spotted a second moving about and finally a third. The Gods favor us today, he thought, his heart pounding at this turn of events. Saliva welled up in his mouth at the thought of the taste of their meat. It was soon replaced by an ache in his groin at the thought of mating with whatever female he wished. His line would be the personal bodyguards of the Prophets.

"Get me a rifle," he growled and within seconds a Beam Rifle was thrust into his waiting paws. He let one shiver of anticipation rush over his body before taking aim.

* * *

Luke couldn't help but let his right hand fidget ever so slightly. An unsettling quiet had fallen over the area, a soft din in the background from Covenant troops moving about towards their position, punctuated by hollow explosions off in the distance. He knew that death was only a few minutes away but he noticed that he felt oddly calm and at peace with everything. The others seemed to feel the same way based on their actions. Instead of trying to figure out some way to get himself out of another situation that should've killed him he wanted to know how many he could kill before falling.

"Why aren't they attacking…" Katana asked, drawing Luke's attention. She came up to his left and stayed close, shoulders almost touching. Parts of her armor were scarred and burned but he couldn't see any visible wounds on her body.

"I've long since stopped wondering why the Covenant do what they do," he replied. The fidget continued, nothing more than an urge to get it over with. His heart started to beat slightly faster but it was still what he would consider normal. He felt an almost imperceptible touch from Katana's hand on his and he glanced over to see her looking at him.

"Do you remember back in New Elysium? On top of the building?" she asked, Luke remembering the moment perfectly. "You said to always stay by your side and I did that. I think I knew then that I'd follow you to Hell and back." He could hear the emotion in her voice, the slight crack as she forced the words out, not wanting to accept what was about to happen to them. Not them as individuals but as a couple. She took her hand and wrapped it around his, the action awkward thanks to their gloves but no less meaningful. She moved herself in front of him and pressed up against him, her height placing the top of her helmet at eye level. "I'll still be at your side," she started to whisper, the channel only open between the two of them. "And I'll alw-." Her sentence was cut off midway through as Luke felt a sharp stabbing pain in his stomach. Off in the distance he saw the last of the flash from the Beam Rifle, the discharge of energy echoing over the cold wind. The pain shot up through his entire torso and he felt his mind slipping away to hide behind the comfort of unconsciousness.

Fighting the urges to sleep, he dropped to one knee, another wave of pain coursing through his body. In front of him he saw Katana's legs but couldn't understand what was happening as they buckled and she fell to the side, her rifle sliding away from her. Staring into her blue visor he looked down just below her breast plate and saw a still smoldering hole clean through. Blood was pouring from the wound and her outstretched hand twitched a few times. Scrambling forward he took her right hand and rolled her onto her back. Removing her helmet, he tossed it to the side and looked down at her, the shock and pain clearly written in her soft features.

"Are you okay?" she forced out, barely a whisper. Blood was beginning to trickle from the corner of her mouth, the color leaving her now pale skin. Her blue eyes danced back and forth, the body already beginning to give way to her wounds.

"Yes," Luke replied back, nearly crying. Tearing his helmet off he forced a smile that wavered and died as he brushed a few pieces of stray hair away from her forehead. "Stay with me Kat, stay with me!"

Tears were beginning to streak down the side of her face, the wind coloring it a pale grey as more and more blood left her body. Shivers began to rack her frame and Luke could no longer hold back his emotions as he began to weep, wrapping his arms around her and pulling her up for an embrace. Her skin was cold against his but he ignored it as he tried to keep her as close as possible.

"I love you," she whispered in his ear, barely audible over the wind biting at his face.

"What?" he asked even though he knew what she said, desperate to hear her response. But nothing came. Shrill alarms began to blare from his helmet off to the side, alerting him to a flatline in a team member's vitals. His grief overcame him and he began to cry uncontrollably, his hunched frame convulsing with each sob. The tears coated his face in water which quickly began to freeze painfully on the skin. "Please don't leave me…please don't leave me…I need you here," he began to plead. Setting her down, he looked at her face and saw her eyes closed, her skin pale white, her pink lips dulled and cracked slightly.

Seeing her like this he balled his fists up and punched the stone in front of him. Shards of ice and marble few up into the air as he punched and punched until he finally screamed out in a combination of grief and rage. He screamed so loud that the Marines around him couldn't help but recoil in fear, terrified of the fury that their comrade was able to conjure up. The veins in his neck swelled and his throat stretched as he continued to roar until his voice went hoarse and he fell forward out of exhaustion.

**A/N: Fun chapter to write despite its content. I've been planning this for months and it's great to finally have it down on paper. You may have noticed that the chapter has a different formatting about halfway through, expect that from now on. I spent a lot of the time that I haven't been writing actually working on my style and I've gotten something that I like and since this chapter was written over about a 2 month period of time it's got a little of both in it. I'm still a ways away from actually completing this half of the story but I'm already jotting down the outline for part 2. Thanks for reading.**


	50. Avalanche

"Avalanche"

Latus snorted as the shot rang out, divinely timed to kill two of the Demons instead of just one. He watched them both fall to the ground, irritated when he saw one had survived. Behind their cover he had no shot and tossed the weapon to the side. He'd killed the other personally.

The of his pack howled in excitement and congratulations when they saw the shot and the resulting death. The Jiralhanae roared, poised to land the final blow. They paced and massaged their guns but stopped when they heard the call from one of the humans. A mix of pain and anger and fear, it echoed over the open space and stabbed at their hearts, giving them pause.

Latus shivered at the call, knowing it was the one he had wounded. Nevermind, he thought, they'd all be dead soon enough.

Luke stared at the stone steps just inches from his face, looking at the snow and small holes his tears had made but not really seeing anything. The cold air had numbed his face and his suit tied to keep him warm as he remained motionless on all fours, Katana to his side.

"Sword…" was all Dagger could say as he walked up next to him, unwilling to look at his dead comrade. Luke didn't hear Dagger speak, though, absorbed in his grief which was quickly swallowing him completely.

A single sniper shot rang out, the deafening sound jolting Luke and he shook before blinking away something from his eye that didn't exist. Looking to his left he saw his helmet and slid it over his head, glad for the solitude it provided him.

"Soldier, I don't know what to say," Nathan whispered apologetically. Luke didn't respond but turned and looked at the Covenant amassed in front of him, his anger swelling. Scanning the aliens he saw the Brute Chieftain standing arrogantly, a discarded Beam Rifle at his feet. His anger continued to boil and he felt the hair on his arm try and rise up, the hair on his head stiffening within his helmet. "Your electromagnetic signatures are erratic, you need to get control of it before you and avalanche of energy, so to speak."

"No, it feels good." The Covenant forces began to attack, Jackals and Grunts leading the charge. Luke's eyes remained on the Chieftain, however, and they both acknowledged the other. "YOU KILLED HER!" he bellowed, pointing at the Chieftain.

A splitting headache washed over Luke and he felt numb and sick at the same time. His HUD began to flicker and pop as static washed over it before the whole display shut off. Behind him Dagger called out and tried to stand up to the blistering pain in his head caused by Luke but he lost control of himself. At his feet the snow pulsed and swirled, pushed away by the chaotic magnetic fields.

Stepping out into the open, plasma was immediately directed at him but as it got close it and warped and broke down into harmless puffs of gas. With such a strong field surrounding him, the Covenant's technology for containing and directing the weapons was completely useless. Taking another step forward followed by another, he made his way towards the Chieftain, each step drawing more fire than the last.

Some of the Covenant began to slow the attack and focus on the Human in front of them, amazed and scared that their weapons weren't working. Brutes started using their Spike Rifles on him but the metal just spun off in different directions whenever a spike managed to get anywhere close to him. Unsure what to do, some of the Covenant started to head back towards the memorial while others froze as Luke walked in the open.

Beginning to jog and finally breaking intoa run Luke continued to run headlong in the Cheiftain who had waived his guards way. Pulling out his pistol, Luke dodged a brutal slam from the Gravity Hammer, the shock wave it produce rippling over hi. Another horizontal swing blew past him but he ignored it and loaded his entire magazine into the Brute which only angered him. Tossing the pistol aside, he made a move to tackle the Chieftain but stopped to grab the hammer before it crashed down on him. With hands wrapped around the shafts just below the blade he slammed the pummel into the Chieftain's thigh and used the momentary lapse to take the weapon.

Ignoring the immense weight of the hammer he brought it up over his head and swung at the Chieftain who was still stunned at losing his weapon. Recovering in time to avoid a death blow he was hit with the full brunt of the shockwave and knocked to the ground. A moment later the blade was lodged into the chest of the Brute and Luke was covered in the blood that sprayed out from the wound. Removing the hammer, he faced down the other Brutes who lined up to avenger their fallen Chieftain. One by one he killed them with the hammer, their broken and dismembered bodies littering the ground, the snow stained with their blood.

Breathing heavily, Luke fell to one knee as the last of his energy left him. Looking down he saw the blood coming out of his wound in his stomach from the Beam Rifle and the pain came back. Looking out into the horizon he saw a group of Banshees approaching fast and knew that they were out of time. Watching the twenty or thirty fliers he waited for them to strafe the monument but was amazed when the Covenant forces in front of the monument were engulfed in plasma. Just as stunned as he was, the Covenant weren't able to shoot back giving the Banshees enough time to line up for another assault.

Looking up into the sky following low rumbles, Luke could see thousands of pinpricks of light cutting through the early morning clouds. Watching the lights as they came down all around he was able to make out the drop pods that the Elites used to hot drop into a combat zone from orbit. All around him the pods landed, a mix of single occupant pods that essentially broke in half to let the Elite out and multi occupant pods that opened like a flower pedal. In a matter of seconds the pods had filled the open space, squads of highly trained Elites quickly cutting through the surprised Covenant Loyalists.

Off in the distance the Brute's cruiser lit up in a light show like no other, the sounds of the explosions reaching them seconds later. Plasma torpedoes continued to rain down on its position while a small group of Elite controlled ships moved through the clouds silently, hundreds of Phantoms being deployed from their hangar bays.

Dizzy from pain and blood loss, Luke forced himself to his feet when a pod landed near him. Blinded by a cloud of snow and dirt, he shielded his face from flying rocks and watched the reptilian aliens leave the pod, scanning for targets. Lights covered the Elites' armor and he saw those first as they approached the wounded human.

"A Demon!" the nearest exclaimed, almost jumping back in a combination of surprise and instinct. The others stepped towards him and within a second Luke was surrounded by them. Their armor was a mix between brown and black and had gentle curved lines unlike the sharper designs the average Elite had. The colors continued to shift and change as the Elites moved making it difficult to focus on them, however, clearly indicating they were special operations. Their helmets reminded Luke of those worn but the Ancient Greeks with two long cheek guards extending down and a third covered where their noses would be. Their eyes were covered with protective screens that glowed a blue-white.

"He's wounded! By the Gds, they do bleed!" one called out, almost gleeful towards his wounds. Three of the Elites remained around him and Luke could feel the disgust welling up inside of him. Then one of them noticed the dead Brutes as his feet, the mutilated Chieftain and the hammer just inches from Luke's hands.

Walking around the corpses the Elite slowly examined each one, a slow nod signaling his approval. The entire scene was unreal to Luke. Here, in the middle of a battlefield, the three Elites were casually inspecting Luke and his kills while their brothers fought against the Covenant forces throughout the city.

Luke continued to feel lightheaded from his wounds and the loss of blood. Collapsing onto a kne again, he kept himself propped up as his fingers shook and he combated nausea. Overhead he heard the familiar scream of Longsword engines quickly followed by numerous Pelicans. Their sound shook the earth and Luke felt his heart beat a little faster and the comforting sound.

The sounds of battle began to fade around him and though he was succumbing to the abyss but he but he drunkenly raised his head and saw that the Elites and Marines were pushing the Covenant away. He was glad to see it but he was instantly hit with a wave of grief knowing Katana only needed to survive a minute or two more.

Falling forward into the snow, he was content to let the cold embrace take him but before he could even sink all the way in strong hands gripped him. Rolling onto his back, he blinked slowly at the soft grey clouds overhead, the morning sun illuminating the battle scarred city. Snowflakes continued to fall on his visor and he ignored the three Elites looking over him and Dagger and a medic rushing up to his side.

No longer able to feel his extremities, his blood and oxygen starved brain started playing tricks on him, fireworks sparking his vision and jumbled voices whispering in his ear. He ignored the jerk as he was lifted off the ground, a Pelican nearby kicking up clouds of sun from its screaming engines waiting for the pilot to send the craft back up in the air. By the time Luke was placed on the floor of the Pelican he was unconscious, just another critically wounded patient getting a dustoff.

* * *

Darkness surrounded Luke and he couldn't feel his body. Absorbed by a cold feeling he anxiously tried to peer through the murky blackness but couldn't see anything. He tried to speak but nothing came out. His heart was beating faster but nothing was happening, fear growing inside of him.

"Why are you here?" a voice asked, booming through the darkness and shaking him to the core. I don't know, he tried to reply, but nothing came out of his throat.

"Why are you here?" the voiced asked again, somehow louder and more forceful. An echo followed this time, bouncing around him in all directions. Before it had died off completely the voice questioned him again and again. Within seconds Luke was consumed by the sound. Then all of the sudden it stopped.

"What happened?" Just out of reach of Luke was Claymore in his armor, helmet cradled in his left hand. He had a warm smile on his face and looking as young and healthy as the day they first met.

"I don't know," he responded quickly, surprised that his voice worked. "I was in D.C. and then…nothing."

Next to Claymore, Captain Ambresio appeared in the same uniform that he were when they met at New Elysium, his topcoat still wet along with his cover.

"You aren't dead, at least not yet," Ambresio said matter-of-factly. "The choice is yours. Sucumb to your wounds or push on. You may die anyways."

"Why is this happening to me? Why are you even here?" he asked, anger building.

"You're in between the land of the living and the land of the dead."

Next to Ambresio Katana appeared. Perfect.

"You must choose. Stay? Or Fight?" Luke didn't listen to what she said, merely heard the sound of her voice, a light in the darkness.

"I miss you already. I want to be with you." Her expression remained still.

"We can be together for eternity." He slowly started to nod his head and could feel himself gaining control of his body. His feet touched the ground and slumped onto his hands and knees.

Feeling the breath in his lungs, he heard a dripping sound and looked down to see red blood pooling up on the mirrored black floor. Looking at himself he saw the scars and the open wounds, all bleeding as if new. Confused, he saw a hand moved towards him and looked at it. Burnt and mutilated, bone exposed through the singed flesh he saw the Captain reaching out to him.

Shocked at the horrific image, he looked at Claymore. His skin was white and cracked open, ice crystals jutting out where his eyes should be. Terrified of what was happening Luke looked at Katana and saw her stomach opened up by the Beam Rifle wound, blood pouring down to her feet.

"No!" Luke kept screaming as he recoiled from the nightmare. He stared into each of their faces, expressionless. Falling back to the ground he crawled away as they walked after him. Finally he was too tired to keep fighting and he stopped, tears of fear running down his cheeks as he held his hands up to defend himself. The Captain continued to get closer, his mangled fingers twitching as they stretched for him.

Just as they were about to touch him Luke let out one more cry and shut his eyes. In that moment he felt a blast of hot air blow past his face. The searing heat tugged at his hair and pulled the tears away from his cheeks. Slowly opening his eyes he had to squint from the immense light that inferno was producing. A wall of flames roared around him, the torrent pulsing and snapping but no touching his skin. His three tormentors remained still as the flames burned their bodies away in front of his eyes. Embers swirled as pieces of flesh and armor broke off and disintegrated. In one final pulse, the flames engulfed them and they were gone.

* * *

Luke opened his eyes with a gasp. He blinked heavily after staring directly into a cluster of medical lamps directly overhead. Surrounded by blinding white light he could feel his heart pounding and adrenaline coursing through his veins. Taking a few controlled breaths he calmed himself, still feeling the linger effects of a sedative.

With clear eyes he looked around at his surroundings. Bleached white walls provided their own illumination. Behind him he could hear the soft beeping of an EKG, it's displays floating in the air. Various tables were set up around the walls and medical instruments and supplies were arranged neatly.

Off to Luke's right he saw the damaged husk of his armor reassembled on a table. He could tell the damage was extensive just from looking; it had most likely seen its last battle.

Looking at himself, he was stretched out on a cushioned operating table in the center of the room. He was dressed in a thin white gown that barely went halfway down his tights despite being their size. Lifting his left hand he saw it was already mostly healed. His other wounds were underneath his gown but he could feel the bandages wrapped tight on the skin. Trying to sit up, he was met with a sickening pain in his abs.

"Please remain as still as possible, Lieutenant," a mechanical voice instructed, clearly belonging to an AI. "The doctor will see you shortly."

Easing himself back down onto the bed he barely had enough time to settle his head down when a door hissed open and swift footsteps came up to his bed. Standing at his side was a young, pretty doctor. She was dressed in black scrubs which contrasted nicely with her pale skin and brown hair. She had large hazel eyes that were bloodshot, small bags under her eyes giving away her lack of sleep despite some makeup. She smelled of a sweet soap and Luke guessed that she had just gotten out of the shower since her hair still looked slightly wet.

"Welcome back," she said with a smile, flashing perfect white teeth.

"Where was I at?"

"You were close to dying on us. You lost a lot of blood and your wounds were incredibly serious. You almost flatlined on us a few times but you somehow pulled through." She spoke quickly while checking various monitors, a skill she had clearly picked up through her profession.

"How long ago was this?"

"We received you six days ago. You had a surgery that night and that's when it got bad. Once you were stabilized we sent you in again then you were put into a medical coma ever since."

"What did you do to me?"

"You basically have an entirely new GI tract now," she smiled and paused for a moment after seeing his surprise. "It was bad, holes everywhere. You've had some skin grafts and a number of transfusions, minor things like that." Luke was surprised at what they had put him through but he was thankful to be alive.

"Where am I?" he asked after a pause, looking around at the surroundings again.

"This is the _UNSC Tyr_. Medical ship sent from Adryon." The doctor walked over to him and began to feel his pulse, checking his extremities to ensure he could still feel them and they were getting proper circulation. She checked the bags of liquid medicine and the IVs in his forearm. "I need to life your gown and check your wounds." Rolling the dress up to his chest she left him exposed on the table as her fingers probed his tender skin, flinching at the touch.

"I don't remember what happened after the Elites arrived. One moment they were all around me then I wound up here."

"It's an incredible story, really. Out of nowhere the Elites showed up with a fleet of over seventy ships. The split off and started to assist UNSC forces around the planet as soon as they arrived. The Brutes seemed pretty put off and it didn't take long to clear them out of their positions. Unfortunately your area was the last to be reached. It had one of the largest concentrations of Covenant forces outside of New Mombasa. Rumor has it they were looking for something around there but they never got a chance to find it. Either way…they found something outside of New Mombasa, an alien portal and the Brutes went through it and what was left of our fleet and the Separatists followed. Not many returned and no one is saying what happened. The only thing that's confirmed is the Master Chief is MIA. Only half of the _Forward Unto Dawn_ returned and I guess he wasn't in that part."

"But the war's over?" The doctor stopped and thought about the question for a moment.

"More or less. At least for us. Apparently the Arbiter," she stopped herself when Luke crunched his forehead at the name, confused. "He's their leader. But the Arbiter has already sent ships out to hunt down what's left of the Brutes and the Covenant. Everything's happening so fast though, hard to tell what's real and what isn't."

Luke was having a hard time comprehending that the war was over. For his entire life he lived under the threat of Covenant attack and now, at least for the moment, there was some small measure of peace. He felt a slight moment of panic as he thought about having to do something other than soldiering but pushed it aside knowing they would always need him. That calming thought was also depressing. Lost in his thoughts the doctor covered him back up and spoke to him he didn't hear her. After a few awkward seconds she left him alone.


	51. Ain't No Rest for the Wicked

"Ain't No Rest for the Wicked"

Luke sat alone in the spacious office, perfectly still, hands on knees. His chair was comfortable and spacious, leather that was perfectly worn and provided support in all of the right places. In front of him was a rich wood desk, the mahogany polished to a shine and free of blemish. It was completely bare except for a single silver fountain pen and a small desk lamp positioned over the center. Beyond that was a large window that displayed a starscape as planets passed by slowly, mimicking a ship exploring space. Behind him was a leather couch that looked like it had never been used, an equally untouched table in front of it. The walls were bare except for a few degrees and pictures.

Deep underground in The Hive, Luke was waiting patiently in Dr. Allara's office, the cool air protecting him from the sweltering Sydney summer that had reached its peak. A little over a month and a half had passed since the Battle of the Potomac but Luke was already almost completely healed. Despite the large and unsightly scars he was close to a hundred percent. Behind him the door opened almost silently.

"Excuse me for being late," she said, walking quickly across the carpeted floor. As she passed Luke could smell her perfume, an intoxicating blend of fruit and flowers. Her hair was hanging just below her shoulders and ha a slight curl at the bottom. She was wearing a tight black skirt that accentuated her figure, a maroon blouse with the top buttons undone, exposing more of her chest. Sitting down with a sigh, she parted her pink lips and flashed Luke a warm smile before leaning back and crossing her legs, resting her hands on her thighs.

"It's fine," Luke replied quietly.

"It's just about impossible trying to get a shuttle back to Earth. I had to call in some serious favors just to get a seat."

"I can imagine."

"How are you healing?" Allara asked, getting down to business.

"It's going well. Scars are nasty looking but nothing hurts."

"Good to hear. I also read the report about the incident…"

"Which one," he stated defensively.

"The loss of control. The amps we implanted weren't able to contain that much energy and you blew them out. It seems quite similar to the incident here not too long ago. I believe I'm correct in stating that her death triggered it?"

"Yes," was all he could manage. Allara nodded, giving him a moment despite his face remaining unchanged.

"Well…after looking over all of the information that I've got, and after consulting with some other doctors I've decided that we won't be replacing the amps." A shadow crossed over her eyes for a split second but then it passed. "Truth be told, they're cutting funding to all of my projects."

"Already?" Luke asked, feeling some of her pain.

"We need to rebuild and the brass wants to go with proven technology, nothing experimental."

"We weren't failures."

"True, and the four of you did great things. But when they look at your tally sheet compared to the Spartans, both series, they don't stack up and that's what the bean counters use to make their decisions." He could see that Allara wasn't happy with the decision but it got under his skin, made him feel worthless. He had hoped that speaking with the doctor would help lift his spirits but it was doing the exact opposite.

Sitting in the chair he suddenly felt alone. Without a war to fight and confined to his bed because of his wounds he was trying to make sense of things. To keep himself focused he kept twisting his fingers on the leather, something Allara clearly noticed.

"Listen, it's not a reflection on you or your team. With budgets we have a finite resource and right now those credits are needed to rebuild, not fight a war. Don't dwell on thins you can't control, Sword. The past is the past and politicians will be politicians. Now," she said with a tone of authority, signaling a change in topic, "how are you and Dagger doing? This is probably all quite a shock to the both of you."

"I haven't seen him recently, he's been deployed most of the time dealing with stragglers. We haven't spoken much in between," hiding the understatement.

"I'm guessing you'd rather be there than here," she probed with a smile.

All Luke did was nod subtly. He wasn't sure where he wanted to be anymore.

"How are you dealing with her death? I'm here if you need me."

"I'm fine," he snapped back, regretting his tone when he saw her recoil. He opened his mouth like he was about to speak but then hesitated, unsure about what he wanted to say. "Almost all the people I've cared about are gone…and the one thing that always kept me going is gone. I'm glad the war is over but I wish I wasn't the only one who made it through."

"Well you still have Dagger and…and you still have me," she added reluctantly at the end, unsure.

"I know," he said, standing up and closing off any further discussion about the topic. "I appreciate the concern, it's just too soon." She nodded in understanding and led him to the door, arm on his back gently, friendly.

"When you're ready I'd like to talk a little more. Less formal, I find that works best."

"Of course." He looked into her eyes and saw the kindness and caring behind them. His fingers twitched for a second and began to reach out-.

"_Lieutenant Sword, please report to the AI Command Center ASAP_." A hollow voice stopped his hand and he looked up at the hidden speaker embedded in the walls. He shrugged and left Allara's office to begin making his way to the Twins.

Within a few minutes he was in the enormous computer room, waiting to find out why he'd been summoned. Neither of the AIs were visible on their pedestals. A moment later a swarm of intelligence officers crammed into the room before an older strode in, familiar.

"Sir," Luke said, saluting Admiral Guthridge.

"At ease. You look well; considering," he remarked, his eyes tired and his face looking like it had aged years. "I hear that you're free and I've got some problems that need dealing with. We're hearing whispers that Insurrectionists are taking this opportunity to start breaking away and cause problems. I think it's about time we start reminding them that we're here."

"You'll be one of the operatives," he continued, "and I need you ready to go the minute your armor is ready, which I hear should be within the next day or two."

"Yes sir," was all Luke could force out, his emotions threatening to get the better of him.

"The Twins will brief you." With that the Admiral spun out f the room and left Luke alone, still a little taken aback from the sudden change of plans.

"_Welcome back_."

_"It's been awhile_."

"_Shall we get started_?"

"Just show me a picture of the target," he said to the Twins, now hovering in the air. "That's all I want to know."

* * *

Three moons illuminated the green forest that Luke was set up in. The ghostly light cast everything in muted colors, the trees giving way to high snow covered peaks, reflecting off a crystal clear lake. Stars filled the sky, a few moving slowly across the plane, not truly stars but ships or spaceports overhead.

Laying on his stomach underneath a camouflage blanket, the only two things that were exposed was the barrel of his 99D-S2 sniper rifle and the 20x zoom modified scope. A thing fiber optic cable snaked away from the scope and was plugged into his helmet.

He had remained motionless for three days after crawling for a previous two days to get into position. His sustenance was provided by a constant IV of nutrients provided by his armor. For three days he had waited for this single night. There was an almost imperceptible uptick in the beating of his heart due to the anticipation but he kept his breathing slow and steady, still knowing a lot could go wrong.

"_Confirmation from Command received_," Nathan whispered in his ear.

Luke thought back to his discussion with the man running the operation, Commander Siphers, before being deployed. They had found each other in the mess at night. With all but the skeleton crew asleep the normally lively room was barren.

"I spoke with Guthridge again before we left."

"What did he have to say?" Luke asked, curious where this was leading but hiding it as he lazily scooped up a spoonful of cereal.

"Depending on how this goes this may become a permanent assignment. With all of the Spartans MIA; truly MIA, not that bullshit Section III feeds us, you and your teammate are all we have left at the moment."

Luke didn't respond, merely nodded and ate another spoonful while waiting to see what Siphers was getting at. His patience was rewarded.

"Just do what needs to be done and we'll all get some recognition and something to do outside of cleaning up rubble." The Commander stood up and was about to walk away when he stopped. "Did you look over the target's dossier?"

"No, sir. If they want him dead then where is it my place to wonder why?" Siphers chuckled quietly when he heard this.

"I bet the UNSC is more than happy to have a tool like you at their disposal. Goodnight, Lieutenant."

Now with his scope trained on a dirt path leading up to the lake, Luke had nothing else to do but wait. He blinked heavily a few times, tired more from boredom than physical exertion, a small scratch irritation the back of his thigh.

He fought the urge to shift his body to get more comfortable as he watched shadowed figures patrol lazily. They'd been sleeping tents for the past two days but tonight they were more active but their sense of security had also dulled them. Still, Luke wasn't willing to risk one alert, or lucky, guard spotting him despite his distance.

Tilting his rifle an imperceptible amount he caught a glimpse of a civilian truck bouncing through the woods, up the trail. Setting his reticule on the vehicle he tracked it as it rumbled into the makeshift camp. Everyone was suddenly awake and they gathered around the vehicle as its passengers scrambled out and began to mingle. Luke's expert eyes scanned the faces for his target. Finally he saw the gruff stubble, the weathered face, and prepared to fire.

His rifle and suit ran all of the calculations for wind drop, planetary rotation and air pressure. Seeing that they were staying around the truck he slowly switched to high explosive rounds and placed the old magazine next to the others that were stacked next to him. Readying himself, he set the reticule on his target's head and squeezed the trigger. A split second later he fired off another at his opposite, both going off before the first casing hit the ground.

Luke saw the first man's head initially explode in a spray of blood and brains before the entire scene was illuminated in a bright orange fireball. Half of the guards were engulfed in the hydrogen cell's explosion while more fell to the shrapnel cloud. Those that survived were stunned and easy pickings.

Quickly firing the remaining two rounds, Luke slapped in a new magazine and dropped four more targets. Within a minute, every one of the rebels was dead. In the center of the camp the truck corpse was still burning, a plume of smoke rising up into the sky. Bodies missing large pieces of flesh were strewn about, blood staining the sand and grass.

Luke remained where he was for four more hours, looking for the slightest clue that someone had managed to survive. With the sun now preparing to rise he tossed the cover off of himself and slid the rifle away. Carefully he pulled himself back onto his legs and sat for a moment to let the blood flow again. Stiffly he got to his feet and put his remaining ammo back into his vest, folding the cover up and stuff it into a small bag onto his back.

"This is Sword calling command, I'm ready for extraction."

**A/N: Well that's the end of Part One! I'm embarrassed it took this long but I just couldn't get around to writing it for a laundry list of reasons. I'm so glad that I was able to finish it though, I was worried that I wouldn't be able to get it onto paper (into Word?) and now that it's halfway done I feel like a monkey is off my back (but in a good way!)**

** I can't thank you guys enough for reading this. Feedback was unfortunately lower than my other stories but I write as much for myself as I do for other people so I don't take it too personally. And when your story is 50 chapters long and only half done I can see why some people would be a little hesitant to become invested, more so when updates were so sporadic.**

** I was thinking about doing something like this in a separate chapter but I think it'd be best to just discuss some of my original aims with the story here. First off, the Tempests as Spartan analogs was something that was pretty unintentional, to tell the truth. Some of the earliest inspiration for the story came when I was at the gym and I would look at my hands in my workout gloves and I wanted to convey this more human side of the story, similar to the ODSTs. In fact, they originally were going to be closer to ODSTs in their appearance and abilities, focusing more on stealth and hit and run tactics than the overwhelming force and ferocity that Luke eventually personified.**

** The psychic aspect of the Tempests, the thing that differentiated them from the Spartans, was also something that I was hoping to play a more prominent role in the story but it just became unwieldy and contrived. Where's the tension if the characters know what's going on around them at all times? I slowly phased it out and eventually wrote it out of the story. It was something I had hoped would play out better than it did. **

** One last thing (I could write a whole separate story about how things changed from day one to now). The story was originally supposed to be no longer than 30-35 chapters and basically cover the entirety of Luke's inception as a soldier to finale of his story, which is still to come. This includes the flash forwards that I included in the earlier parts of the story but as I went deeper into the story I knew that I wouldn't be able to keep it up and so I decided to save that second arc for a full fledged story that'll be a companion to this one. I've got a few chapters written up now and I'm really pleased with the direction it's going, I'm focusing more on the relationships Luke has developed and this post-Great War environment that humanity finds itself in. Don't expect it for a while though, I'm taking more time and rewriting things after letting them simmer for a while.**

** Again, thanks to every single one of you who ever clicked on my story. You picked my story out of a list of incredible writers and I appreciate it beyond words. I hope you enjoyed yourself. See you soon.**


End file.
